Weyoun and Mia: His Enemy's Daughter
by JeffC FTW
Summary: He was the Vorta ambassador to the Dominion; she was the daughter of the Federation captain of DS9. They encounter and fall passionately in love, but their opposing sides threaten to tear them apart. First in the Vorta Brides Trilogy.
1. Prologue: A Story to Unfold

**This was actually the very first Star Trek story I did before my oneshot, "Sweet Vorta Fantasy". Never in our lives did Windblazer Prime and I think we would do a Star Trek: DS9 fic together, most notably the ruthless yet sensual Weyoun. ;D The one Jeffrey Combs spoke clearly he enjoyed playing the most out of all the characters he portrayed, even though I remember him stating loud and clear "They're my babies; I never pick a favorite out of any of them." Weyoun is a definite fan favorite, especially to us fangirls. Which brings me to mention where he meets and falls in love with Mia Sisko, daughter of Captain Benjamin Sisko and a dabo girl of Quark's. We're both still in the early stage of officially falling for the show, little experience with Star Trek period even though we've done enough research, seen as much as we could of the show itself so far, and are trying our best. :) This is so different from Star Wars, but this project is so fun we think it will be worth it.**

 **"Weyoun and Mia: His Enemy's Daughter" is named after a Harlequin romance novel of the same name, by Terry Brisbin. Some of the chapters are named after beautiful composition pieces by BrunuhVille on YouTube. Even the amazing Odo (played by the equally fabulous Rene Auberjonois, a longtime friend and costar of Jeff's) and Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) play important roles in this story.**

 **Disclaimer: NONE of Star Trek and its characters belong to us other than Mia.**

Prologue

A Story to Unfold

Living on the Federation station had been a blessing of its own, and an extreme off-guard surprise. Amelia "Mia" Delgado-Sisko was eighteen years old exactly when she was adopted by Commander Benjamin Sisko and his son Jake following the death of his wife, Jennifer Sisko. This was prior to them being stationed on Deep Space 9 and she was a young woman who had lost everything - her family and home, and nothing she had left. Her parents had moved from Puerto Rico when she was still a child, and they were good friends with the Siskos, so despite her being six years older than Jake Sisko, they shared an immediate bond which would grow as time went on.

Her mother, Rosa Delgado, had died when she was nine years old of ovarian cancer, and her father, Antonio Delgado, was Lieutenant Commander of the _USS Saratoga_ at the time of the battle against the Borg, which was under the command of former captain Jean-Luc Picard; Lt. Commander Delgado had been killed in the middle of the action. Also, at a price, the _Saratoga_ was breached and ended up being destroyed, not long before survivors were recovered along with Jake, who was barely twelve at the time. His mother, however, wasn't so lucky, and everyone escaped intact in time for the ship to detonate itself. Benjamin Sisko had seen it all happen from the escape pod he joined with the rest of the crew and surviving residents.

Mia had been on Earth at the time, attending university and having just turned eighteen. Despite her sharp mind and intelligence, she had little interest in anything other than imagination, adventure, and a knack for fun and parties; she wasn't the hard partying type, but she loved entertainment. But when her father died and Ben Sisko welcomed her into his family, she suffered a meltdown and moved in with him, quitting school altogether and living with Jake on Mars for the duration of his own education while his father - now hers, as she always looked up to him as one of two fathers - was station elsewhere. Both Sisko siblings, in bond if not blood, eventually joined their father on Deep Space 9 which happened to orbit the beautiful planet of Bajor, which reminded Mia so much of Earth, though Jake had been less than happy with it despite his father's assurances.

Since expressing her happiness for a new adventure, twenty-one-year-old Mia actually found that she loved living in outer space, in a far-off universe, even though this was far from a fantasy. Not long after moving in, she met Quark, the Ferengi who ran the bar aboard the station and saw her as his newest addition, which her father wasn't very eager about, given their first meeting involving his nephew Nog who had aided in an apparent robbery. Mia had been with her father when he helped security chief Odo - a Changeling - take in Nog and the other guy whom she never learned of. That was when Quark came in and requested his nephew's custody, and then his eyes laid on Mia, seeing her as a potential working girl for his bar.

She was eventually accepted after the interview with Quark by her father and Constable Odo, but it hadn't been easy for "poor" Quark, who protested that his people could end up "lined and shot", as quoted, though Benjamin assured that he would never allow that, as well as setting Nog free. "The Promenade is the vital heart of this station; we can't just let it sit and lay dead," he'd said. "So someone has to give it life again, and that is you." And because he was a Ferengi who loved nothing more than profit, Quark agreed.

Odo wasn't exactly warmed up to her father until a little later after the interview with Quark, but he certainly warmed up to Mia right away, calling her a "rare flower which survived space and breathed life into this harsh environment". She did not remember ever feeling so flustered, much less commented by the gruff chief of security. But since exchanging her first words with him, Mia thought she wanted to have a good relationship with him and everyone else she met after him. By everyone, she meant _everyone_. No exceptions.

The main woman whom she looked up as a maternal figure and best friend despite a rather tough beginning was Major Kira Nerys, a former member of the Bajoran Occupation who disliked everyone she came across, especially after the casualties of her homeworld. Mia remembered the heated backlash the major gave Commander Sisko; her father tried to explain that they were here to help Bajor, but she countered that the Cardassians said the same six decades ago before they broke their word, and look what happened to the flourishing world beneath DS9. Mia herself was sensitive to any kinds of back talk, and she could have sworn she felt like crying when the major snapped at her because she was the new commander's daughter, before softening and apologizing in spite of herself, welcoming Mia back with as much persuasion the girl needed.

Another important figure was Jadzia Dax, the Trill hosted by a symbiont host called Dax, the previous owner being Curzon Dax, who had once mentored Ben Sisko. Dax was three hundred years old, but Jadzia as a person was twenty-eight in human years, young and beautiful, vibrant and ambitious if Mia wasn't exactly on the same boat as ambitious. But at least someone who was less than a decade older than she was turned out to be an older sister even if she carried the memories of an older friend of Mia's adoptive father.

As for everyone else she met on the station, despite her dropping out of school, she loved helping however and whenever she could, primarily with the Chief of Operations, Miles O'Brien - whose wife Keiko ran a school that Jake, along with Nog whom he became fast friends with, attended - as well as Dr. Julian Bashir, namely because of her fascination with science and combat. When questioned why she didn't get a degree in school on the subject, Mia simply answered it was because "I'm the kind of girl who never settles on just one thing in life."

Adjusting to life on Deep Space 9 was an adventure alright, but one day they were paid a visit by none other than the Cardassians...led by Gul Dukat himself. Mia was working that day when he went to her father to congratulate him and offer support with restoring Bajor to its glory, and during that time, his men were enjoying themselves in Quark's bar. These Cardassian men were having fun WAY too much, winning at every chance they had at their games of dabo; as one of the girls assigned to every table, Mia dressed in a revealing garment - her own being an iridescent bustier and loincloth of purple snakeskin with some beading - and allowed herself to try her best at distracting them into losing. However, while they were, shall we say, "enchanted" by her charm and beauty, they still managed to win the gambles. That is, until the fun was ruined by Major Kira, which made her laugh at poor Quark's business' closure.

The Bajoran wormhole was discovered not long after, marking the beginning of the conflicts between the Federation and the Cardassians. Before its appearance, it was considered only a story just like the various Greek, Irish, Japanese and other cultural myths on planet Earth...but upon discovery and how important it was officially considered, the station was relocated to its mouth where it would serve as a passageway for cargo, starships and warships from then on. Ben Sisko had been trapped in there then, overwhelmed with the grief of losing his wife as well as realizing he had to let her go and move on with his life, because he had two children left to raise who needed him more than ever. Meanwhile, Dukat - who had thought Sisko was dealing with someone else in the "wormhole" - had gotten himself into trouble on the way, which had caused the issue between his Cardassian allies and the crew of DS9. Mia had been with Kira when Quark and no one else in the bar needed her around, agreeing with the major that surrender was not their option, and that they would stand where they were until her father, the commander, was recovered and brought back safely.

Thankfully, the wormhole reopened again and the Cardassians stopped their assault on the station. Her father was safe and sound, along with Gul Dukat himself. Mia remembered most how she and her brother ran to welcome their father back with open arms, relieved and happy that he was alive, and he would later tell them of his experiences which she knew now. He, the hailed Emissary of the Prophets of Bajor; the newly discovered wormhole itself would be called what it was known now, and everyone aboard the Deep Space 9 station would continue to repair it and call it home. And the Cardassians then left the area, but they would be back someday soon, and after that, Mia Sisko - dabo girl and daughter of Commander Benjamin Sisko - would have a few meetings and tingling encounters from Gul Dukat - who would eventually become DS9's greatest adversary of all time.

 **So this chapter mostly focuses on meeting Mia as well as her relationship to the others on the station of Deep Space 9 - and the events of the first episode, "Emissary". Next chapter will flash forward two years later and have her finally meeting the eventual love of her life, a certain violet-eyed representative of the enemy of the Federation: the malevolent Dominion.**


	2. Foreboding

**"To the Death" was one of our favorite episodes, and the first time we meet Weyoun. The Jem'Hadar rebels attack the station and steal equipment to complete the Gateway, Captain Sisko joins the Dominion in stopping this, and Mia gets to meet Weyoun 4. :) This chapter is also named after another piece by Adrian von Ziegler.**

Chapter One

Foreboding

This costume had been used for two years and was showing signs of worn. Mia had never had issues with it until now. But what could you expect after repeated use? Today was her day off, and she just found this. Might as well ask Garak to fix this.

"Oh, dear Mia, the skirt is the problem," he explained. "I can repair the panels for you and hand it over before the day is over." He set the long garment down on the table and picked up the brassiere itself. "However, this won't be of any problems," he assured her with a small smile of hope.

Mia smiled back at him. "What would anyone do without you, my friend?"

He looked at her in surprise before he laughed. "Mia, of all the people of this station - besides Julian - I find you the sweetest angel amongst. You sail on all forms of troubled waters to keep the peace. How do you even tolerate squabbles of any kind?"

She shook her head. "I can never stand squabbles of any kind," she answered, using his words, making them both laugh - and then their attentions were drawn overhead when her father, now captain, announced to the senior staff.

 _"Report to bridge."_

"I should go with them," she told Garak, who nodded and watched as she left his shop.

"You better have a look at this," Benjamin told everyone as soon as they were aboard the bridge. Jadzia Dax took her place to his right side. Red lights were flashing, but that wasn't what everyone was looking at. The viewscreen was showing all of the station in space, clearly unharmed, but what was most disturbing was the sight of the pylon of the station: the upper part had been _destroyed._

"My God, Daddy," she gasped, coming up to his left. "What happened?"

He shook his head. "Exactly what I'd love to know," he answered, putting his arm around her shoulder. "Major, set damage control to work and fix whatever needs to be, but make sure nothing is further impaired than it already is. And Mia, get back into the main station where it's safer." She hated being treated like the damsel in distress, so she waited until everyone was out of sight to do what she knew she had to. She just hated being of no use anywhere.

The damage control was taken care of and run by Kira as ordered, but Mia had it in her to not listen to her father's orders and go with the major, because she knew her boss would be there. Kira wasn't pleased but allowed her to stay nevertheless, and keep close to her, which she happily complied. Workers and personnel were working to clear the smoke in the air, Kira barking orders to those that passed by. Mia whipped her whole body around to see him coming through steam, shouting, "Has anyone seen my brother, Rom?"

Kira stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "He's fine," she assured him. "He's working with the damage control team today. Level five."

Quark heaved a heavy sigh then and put his hand on his abdomen. "What a relief." He then looked down at Mia. "When I find him, I promise I _will_ kill him," he promised her, making her laugh a little. "For SCARING me like this." She shook her head along with Kira and watched as he headed back in the direction he came in.

"Major!" Odo had come up to her, holding a PADD. "Here are the preliminary lists of stolen equipment."

"Report, Major." Uh oh, her father. "Amelia!" he scolded when he saw her. "I thought I told you to get back into the main part..."

"I'm sorry, Captain, but I had to be here where it was necessary," she answered calmly. "But can you lecture me later?" He shook his head at her before looking back up at Kira, who now had the PADD from Odo.

"It was a...Jem'Hadar strike team," she explained to him. "They beamed aboard from a civilian transport and disabled all communications and weapons, and set off an explosive in upper pylon 3. All of it before anyone in the station could respond." Mia felt her blood chill as she thought of these Jem'Hadar, servants of the Dominion, who attacked her father's station and stole from the armory and laboratory. Twenty-three now, she knew something big was on the verge of happening. Living on the station for two years taught her to never take anything out of planet Earth lightly.

She looked over to where Dr. Bashir was helping with the wounded and dying. Behind her, she could still hear Kira explaining to her father how the science lab was raided and handing the list of stolen items to him. Sisko read them off: microfusion initiators, photonic amplifiers, and power stabilizers. The Jem'Hadar had been gone back into the wormhole long before anyone knew they were hit.

"Casualties?" Julian asked from where he was now, over a dead woman who suffered trachea trauma.

"So far, eighteen confirmed dead," Odo responded grimly, "thirty-one missing, and over a hundred wounded."

"They left about forty-five minutes ago at most," Kira added.

"Then we can still catch them, since their ion trail hasn't vanished," Dax agreed.

"I intend to do more than catch them. Sisko to _Defiant,_ prepare for takeoff. Doctor, stay and assist the casualties. Major, the station is yours. Contact Starfleet and have them send more ships out here just in case this is a diversion. And Mia..." She looked up at him with her chin slightly raised. "...obey my orders this time and remain with the major."

"No," she said boldly and quietly. "I'm going with you. You're going to need someone to help keep the peace with words and appearance." She motioned to herself with her long dark hair flying wild over one shoulder, her light blue halter crop top baring her arms and abdomen, and the skirt reaching the floor with a daring slit in the front to bare her right leg. No one would harm her physically, not even with phaser blasts, but her father shook his head. This wasn't dabo, after all.

"Amelia Sisko, this is an order, and I ORDER you to remain behind with Major Kira where you will be protected." She opened her mouth to respond before Nerys spoke for her.

"Captain, I respect your order as much as she does, but I think she will be safe. What can go wrong if she's protected by armed men?" she asked with a little smile. Her persuasion worked better than Mia's, for Benjamin sighed in resignation; there was no time to waste in arguing after all.

"Very well, but stay close at all times. Constable," he told Odo, "you're with us. And do the honors of keeping my daughter by your side. As long as no harm comes to you on the trip." Mia looked to Kira and smiled softly, receiving one from the major, before joining Odo's side in time for her father to beam all four of them to the _Defiant_ and enter the Bajoran wormhole to locate the escaping Jem'Hadar.

~o~

"What do you see, Dax?" Sisko asked some time later.

"Nothing," the lieutenant Trill answered. "Their ion trail is getting fainter. The Jem'Hadar must be emitting a magneton pulse to cover their tracks." Odo felt himself stiffen when he heard her mention the polarized magnetic energy which was produced during a damage to the main energy reactor. These Jem'Hadar must be very sophisticated if they were trying to clean their trail to nothing left.

"Frankly," he said to the captain, "I'm surprised something like this hasn't happened sooner. Fleeing the wormhole makes Deep Space 9 a tempting target." He looked up and saw Mia shift from foot to foot, a habit of hers when she was nervous. He wondered why she even wanted to come here to begin with; he adored her, but to babysit a stubborn girl like her? He was Chief of Security, but that didn't make him a babysitter for Captain Sisko's daughter.

Sisko sighed and sat down. "Sometimes I wish we could have the _Defiant_ standing guard twenty-six hours a day, so we can prevent something like this from happening again."

Mia had been beside Odo all the time, and now she was behind her father. "Don't worry, Daddy, we'll find them," she assured him, the tender soul she was - and equally fierce-tempered, just like Nerys. Men would kill to have a woman like that, but sometimes females like Nerys and Mia were too stubborn to give in to a man's advances that easily. "Right, everyone?" she asked, looking around at the rest. She received nods of agreement, but while Odo sided with her, he silently doubted they would reach the fleeing Jem'Hadar ship in time...

And then Dax, bless her, piped up just as an alarm - not the emergency - rang. "I've got something!"

"Red alert, onscreen," Benjamin Sisko ordered, standing right away. The red lights flashed on at his demand. Showing on the screen was an easily recognizable Jem'Hadar attack ship, but that didn't mean it was undamaged, either. There was no way this could be the one they were searching, Odo mused, despite Worf's words.

"Major Kira said that the Jem'Hadar that attacked the station used a transport ship," he said. But Chief O'Brien disagreed upon further technical analysis.

"That ship is in pretty bad shape," he spoke, "looks like someone has been using it for target practice. There's no way this can be ours that we're looking for."

According to the Trill, whoever was still aboard was sending out a distress signal, calling for help. Odo had a very strange, negative feeling about the survivors of that ship - surviving Jem'Hadar, no other. Who else could there be besides them? "It could be a trap," he said cautiously.

Sisko agreed with him, even if he didn't voice it aloud. "How many crew members aboard?"

Dax checked with a press of a few buttons. "I'm reading seven life signs."

O'Brien looked startled, perhaps concerned even more. "They won't be breathing for long; the reactor is about to go critical and take the survivors with it."

~o~

Any other moment, he and his remaining Jem'Hadar would be dead in the destruction of their ship. He should be grateful that they were "rescued", but once they were in the presence of the "enemy", Weyoun was unsure about being in the presence of everyone else surrounding the man himself, Captain Benjamin Sisko, but diplomacy meant grace. And as Field Supervisor of the Dominion, he was no good dead before his job was completed. The female Changeling's orders were clear: seek out the renegade Jem'Hadar and punish them for their treachery. But his ship had been attacked by the civilian transport before they could accomplish in capturing the rebels, left to float about in space until it self-detonated.

Thankfully, the distress signal had been responded.

He stood with the lead Omet'iklan, Virak'kara, Toman'torax and three more in front of the Federation crew, aboard the _USS Defiant._ His guards were looking for their weapons for defense, before the man in charge informed them, "If you're looking for your weapons, they were removed in transport."

Omet'iklan regarded him coolly. "Even without weapons, we're more than a match for you." Jem'Hadar were rather savage beings, without the ketracel-white in their system that they survived off without real food and drink, almost like ration for survival of the fittest.

"I wouldn't be too certain of that." That new voice - that was a Klingon. Omet'iklan's men were getting a bit restless now; Weyoun decided now to announce his presence among them. The Jem'Hadar parted to let him step forward.

"Control your men," he ordered the lead guard, tightening his grip on the case of white, before turning his attention to the Federation crew. "These people saved our lives." His temper was on the rise when the man dared to question him.

"And for that, we should take advantage -"

"You. Do. _Nothing,_ " Weyoun ordered firmly, tongue tied, and held up one finger. "Without my approval. My apologies, Captain," he said to the dark-skinned man he remembered reading in a report from the Founder. "I'm afraid the Jem'Hadar are sadly deficient to social graces."

The captain glared first at him and then at his men. He wasn't eager for social politeness; how could he when it was obvious the renegades attacked his station and stole what they needed to finish what the Dominion scientists found on Vandros IV? "Two hours ago, my station was attacked by Jem'Hadar." The very same ones who set fire to his own ship and left him stranded in deep space.

"I know," Weyoun answered solemnly. "They attacked us, too."

"And _why_ would your own people attack you?" Weyoun was surprised to see that the speaker was a male Changeling. He had to be the chief of security of Deep Space 9, by the looks of him. He tried to think of the name of this being, before it struck him: Odo. He opened his mouth before Omet'iklan interrupted.

"Sir, tell them nothing. This is NOT their concern."

This _was_ their concern because their station had been attacked by the same traitors to the Dominion, so they deserved to know. "Your next line of white will be in two hours," he told Omet'iklan sharply, trying to keep from exploding at being questioned, "and if you want it in time, you will be quiet and _do as you are told._ " He turned his attention to Sisko. "Captain..." He stepped away from his Jem'Hadar soldiers and lowered his voice even though everyone could still hear him. "...you and I should talk...in private."

~o~

Her breath had been knocked out of her lungs when both her eyes - one brown, the other blue - saw that pale, crystalline face and the vivid violet-colored eyes which glittered with both radiance and malice. His head was of lush dark curls and elongated ears you could barely see the inner slits which enabled him to hear. And his voice was smooth and alluring as a Japanese zen garden. He might be appealing in appearance, but he was also a faithful servant to the malevolent Dominion and therefore that made him a frightening figure. The Jem'Hadar served the enemy Dominion, and that made him so, too. Mia blinked; where did those thoughts of this mysterious being come from? She didn't know him, already saw him as a threat, but she was also thinking about how handsome he was!

"I agree, because I want to settle this mess about these Jem'Hadar and my station," her father answered, "but I'm afraid you didn't formally introduce yourself."

The alien-man let loose a laugh; the sound was a beating exotic drum to her ears - from African to all Asian countries, Japanese, Irish and on - so soothing and magical, yet so exciting and dangerous. "Of course. Where are my manners? I am Weyoun, Dominion Field Supervisor. And I am a Vorta, if you are wondering. My people are a species you probably don't see everyday." She'd read a little bit about the Vorta; they were indeed rare creatures, sensual in appearance and very crafty, and the words "rarest and most beautiful" were truer words never spoken. There had been one particular Vorta of this species - a female - whom her father, Jake, Quark and Nog had picked up from another planet when they were under attack by some Jem'Hadar, before it was revealed that her appearance deceived her true loyalties. So she wasn't going to let herself get any deeper with this man because this was business and business only. She stood ground beside her father and took his hand into hers.

"Dad, take my advice and be careful," she whispered, but the Vorta had such good ears he could even hear her from afar. He laughed again and extended his hand so it touched her shoulder. She jumped under his cool, sizzling touch. Warmth was left as a side effect. She looked up once again into Weyoun's liquid blue gaze, calculating meeting with new timidity.

"My dear, do not fear for your father. As you can see, I'm not physically imposing, unlike my men." His head half-turned to his escorts. "Omet'iklan, I'd advise to not harm this...delicate flower, in any way, while I speak to her father. Understood?" He looked down at her and smiled again. "Rest assured, Miss Sisko." Mia felt disappointed when his gaze returned to Benjamin. "Captain, lead the way."

Thank God the guards went with them on last minute notice, despite their master's threat. Mia felt a warm, clay-smooth hand rest on her shoulder. Odo was looking down at her. "Your father is a brave man," he said softly. "Remember, rest assured." He was just as suspicious as she and O'Brien, Worf, Dax and everyone else around them, but for Mia herself, she wasn't sure if she could stay that suspicious about the Vorta, whom she had yet to learn more of.

~o~

The mess hall of all places, which was currently unoccupied, was the best place to speak to the captain of Deep Space 9. Weyoun actually didn't care as long as it was just the two of them getting to business. Looking before the powerful man in front of him, he had to say he felt esteemed to be in the presence of the one of the most intimidating men he'd encountered in his career. "If you have something to say to me, make it quick," Sisko ordered, his patience wearing thin. Weyoun's own was doing the same, and he wasn't aboard the "rescue ship" for nothing. Nevertheless, he smiled cordially and inclined his head forward.

"Captain Benjamin Sisko, I feel honored. Your psychographic profile requires reading for Vorta Field Supervisors. I probably know things about you that you don't know yourself." His record was brilliant, flawless in courage but casualties in some manner, but warfare and disputes were all about disaster. He wanted to make a good first impression as it was required.

"If you're trying to impress me," Sisko stated coldly, "you can forget it."

Weyoun regarded him with a calculating, piercing look also bordering on sneaky, which anyone else would call. He was a master at playing cards, always having a trick or two up his sleeve, and this was the card he would play now, hoping it would tempt the indominable Benjamin Sisko. "What would you say," he said as he circled him, "if I offered to make you absolute ruler of the Federation? No President, no stifling Chief of Staff...just you."

He paused in front of him with the last word, his mouth curved upward slightly, already knowing what Sisko's answer would be long before he answered. He wanted nothing more than to have a mutual alliance with the Federation, but Benjamin Sisko was not a man who gave into temptation so easily, it seemed. "I'd say that your...psychographic profile of me isn't as good as you think," the captain said.

Weyoun laughed at his proud self, resisting what all men desired: hunger for power. He liked Sisko already more than he did before. He held up both his hands in a mild gesture of "take it easy". "Just...doing my job. Trying to build a bridge between the Dominion and the potential ally. After all, wouldn't it be much simpler if the Dominion _and_ the Federation could reach some...mutual beneficial understanding without resorting to the unpleasantness of military conflict?"

He'd always hated conflicts of any kind, despite opposing sides being one of the most natural in the world - one of the most natural of this universe for that matter - and war conflict was beyond his own control. Unless the Federation went too far and started something drastic and would force the Dominion to act, and vice versa. "I would love nothing better than to find the Jem'Hadar who attacked my station," Sisko told Weyoun, approaching the conference table and laying his phaser rifle down before him. "If you want to build a bridge, why don't you start there? The Jem'Hadar, after all, do belong to you and your superiors."

Perfect. It seemed they were at the start of a possible mutual understanding, after all. "I can lead you to them," Weyoun offered, " _but..._ there is something I need in exchange." He couldn't have the rebellious Jem'Hadar excluded without the help of the captain's armed forces, which was not on the Dominion's side at the present.

"And what's that?"

"I want you to help me eliminate them. The Jem'Hadar that attacked your station are renegades. They've turned their back on their oath of allegiance to the Dominion, and it's MY job to see to it that they're punished." He lifted his chin up with dignity and arrogance, determined to carry out his responsibility because it could not be overlooked so easily.

Sisko was utterly baffled even though he tried not to show it. "Why do you need _my_ help? The Dominion is fully equipped that you could send a fleet of Jem'Hadar warships after them!"

"I'm afraid we don't have the time." Especially with the matter of the completion of one of the galaxy's oldest, most cultivated transport devices long since the race of its origin went extinct. He seated himself down at the table, still looking up at Sisko. "Captain, are you familiar with the Iconians?" he asked.

"They controlled a vast interstellar empire about...two hundred thousand years ago," Benjamin answered, matter-of-factly.

Weyoun was unimpressed. "What's more important is _how_ the Iconians controlled that empire."

"The Gateways, of course."

"Exactly. Sophisticated transporters that would allow them to move instantaneously from one planet to another, from one _solar system_ to another without the use of starships."

"What does any of this have to do with me?"

"Dominion scientists recently discovered a Gateway on one of our outlying worlds. We sent a team of scientists to restore it, but their Jem'Hadar guards _rebelled_ and are now trying to complete the Gateway themselves." And once they did, there would be no means of ordering them to surrender and answer for their crimes, which would mark the end of himself, his gods, and the Dominion itself.

Sisko allowed the information to sink in and nodded, tying these rebel guards to the ones who ravaged his station and stole the equipment which turned out what would be used to make the Gateway and themselves indestructible. "These...renegade Jem'Hadar stole some equipment from my station. EPS power stabilizers, microfusion initiators, and photonic amplifiers."

Weyoun pursed his lips and nodded. "I would say it's very possible they are going to use that equipment to help them complete the Gateway." His face softened, the puppy dog eyes near enough to make another person succumb to his pleas easily...and they would find themselves in the Venus flytrap before they had time to blink. "You understand the nature of our dilemma." He knew Captain Sisko hated the Dominion, but he did not understand just yet that the end of the Dominion also meant the end of the Federation, both sides of the same coin.

Sisko sympathized, but not for the Dominion. He nodded slowly, a faraway look in his eye. "If the Jem'Hadar were to make the Gateway operational...they'll become virtually invincible." Weyoun nodded, too.

"Our experts predict that our renegades would gather support from other Jem'Hadar units, launch a general inspection, and effect a complete takeover of the Dominion in less than a year."

The captain regarded him for a few long moments before picking his weapon back up and turned away from him. " _None_ of which is my problem," he said defiantly. How _dare_ he think so simplistically of the Dominion as if it was no more than a worn slipper or a burnt out generator, something of no more power and of little use now! Weyoun begged to differ.

The Vorta agent jumped up from his seat as soon as the captain turned his back to him. "That's VERY short-sighted of you, Captain!" he said angrily. "Think about it: if the Jem'Hadar seize control of the Dominion, there will be _no_ stopping them. Even shutting down the Wormhole won't protect the Alpha Quadrant. With the Gateway, they could put a million Jem'Hadar warriors on any Federation planet instantaneously." He knew how much Sisko did not want to see every inch of his hard work and restoring to order falling to ruin because he let another side be destroyed by a newer, more powerful force that was once chained like an animal, and that meant the longer the animal was locked up, the more vengeful it became. Weyoun lowered his voice precariously.

"Would you care to see our projection of Federation casualties?"

Sisko seemed to take his words in. He turned around to face him then, mouth curling as though trying not to laugh. "Couldn't the Founders just order them to surrender? From what I know, the Jem'Hadar are genetically engineered to OBEY them."

"The Founders' ability to control the Jem'Hadar has been somewhat..." He turned away from him as he spoke, working for the right word without making himself and his gods seem like fools who made a grievous error. Controlling the Jem'Hadar was as delicate as cloning, but cloning his people was another matter aside that fact. "...overstated," he said finally, turning back around to look at the captain. "Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to addict them to the white. They can never survive without it; if they didn't, they'd be more animal than rational-thinking beings."

"Or maybe the Dominion isn't as...stable as you'd like us to believe."

Weyoun's pale amethyst eyes hardened as his body. "The _Dominion,_ " he said ominously, still softly, "has endured for two thousand years and will continue to endure long after the Federation has crumbled into _dust_." He'd leaned his face near enough to let his breath wash over. "But, we'll leave that to history. Right now, we have a more pressing concern. The Gateway...must...be... _destroyed._ Agreed?"

He knew good and well that the other man should agree, because the last thing Sisko needed was the cost of billions to trillions of lives, as well as those of himself and his own crew. And after a long time of pause to consideration, the captain said the one word which he had hoped for.

"Agreed."

 **I'm happy with how this chapter came out, nothing else to say other than that. As for the development of Weyoun and Mia's eventual relationship, the plan is for them to simply encounter each other until Weyoun's next incarnation - the fifth - and that's when things get serious between them. :)**


	3. Feuding Sides

**So throughout the course of this story, we'll follow the cannon of the series before we get to the events of "Treachery, Faith and the Great River" - which is one of my favorite episodes and one of the most touching - and then things will get slightly AU while staying true to the whole show. :)**

Chapter Two

Feuding Sides

The captain called everyone to the mess hall for the joint briefing. Odo wasn't sure about being here with these Jem'Hadar savages, nor was he sure he could trust any of them. He was with Miles O'Brien and Jadzia on this, but Worf was ready for any more trouble ahead, which was very dangerous for all of them. Klingons never hesitated to start a fight. As for the Jem'Hadar present, they were oblivious to the whole project of the Gateway and therefore, Benjamin insisted on keeping their whole plan of attack regarding it a secret from Omet'iklan and his men. But Odo had his doubts that the secret would last this long from them. Benjamin didn't like this any more than he did, either.

Thankfully, Mia was not in the room this time; her father had sent her to her quarters for the rest of the mission. She was a remarkable woman, beauty and brains alike, but she'd defied her father enough this far for her own good. Odo adored the fact that she had grown into a strong, beautiful young woman, but the first rule of troubled times was to listen and obey your commander. If they were still on DS9, Odo would have thanked Quark for calling her back to work and taking her out of his hands instead. He didn't like the Ferengi anymore than Sisko did, but at least he'd owe him for depriving him of the babysitting task.

"According to Dominion intelligence," Sisko spoke as he stood beside the Vorta, Weyoun, with Omet'iklan and Worf on their opposite, the wall data screen in between them, "the Jem'Hadar established a base camp here." He motioned to the architectural structure which began to appear on the screen - it was a ziggurat, a building of Iconian culture thousands of years ago. "The interior of the structure is riddled with a network of quarters and interlocking chambers. Our primary objective is to destroy the Jem'Hadar arms and supply cash...in this chamber." Said chamber was the heart of the whole temple, and the trick itself would be getting there. They couldn't just beam directly into the structure, which meant fighting their way in - the hardest of ways.

Omet'iklan spoke up. "Jem'Hadar tactics include being inside the base camp at all times. Nine will patrol the perimeter while additional troops are deployed throughout the city."

"How many renegades altogether?" Worf questioned.

"A hundred and sixty-two in the ritual garrison. We killed at least twelve during the initial rebellion, leaving a hundred and fifty now."

Jadzia didn't look convinced of the possibility of success. "Just between you and me, Captain, I think we're outnumbered."

"Wouldn't it be simpler to take out the base from orbit?" O'Brien questioned, narrowing his eyes slightly. "A couple of quantum torpedoes should do the entire area." But Sisko shook his head, stating that it wasn't an option. And then Weyoun was there.

"The central structure is composed of solid neutronium, so it is so dense it can't be scanned or necessarily be destroyed with a direct hit from a quantum torpedo. Which means as your captain stated: go in yourselves."

"As it should be," spoke up another Jem'Hadar, Toman'torax. "And punish those who break the vow of loyalty."

All eyes, especially Dax and O'Brien were on Odo. Why were they looking at him? _He_ didn't tell them anything; the Jem'Hadar just found out somehow. "Are you accusing me of something?"

"It is not our place to accuse a god, or betraying heaven," Omet'iklan said. "The gods themselves...will sit in judgment over you." His hard eyes were on Odo the whole time.

Odo seethed and spoke up his defense. He and his people weren't idyllic, unearthly creatures who watched over their creations. He was a living, breathing, shape-shifting being if not a solid like his colleagues and friends around him. "I'm NOT a god," he countered, "and neither are the Founders. The sooner you realize that, the better off you'll be."

Sisko regarded this with a soft scoff, this petty dispute about deity, before returning to the important task. "We've chosen a beaming site...here, in this wooded area. That will give us the chance to evaluate the situation before proceeding." He shut it off; briefing was over. "Our first objective will be to secure the main entrance to the ziggurat."

"And neutralizing nine guards before they can raise an alarm," Worf stated with a nod. "That will be difficult."

Even from where he was sitting, Odo could hear another Jem'Hadar, Virak'kara, whisper to the soldier who spoke about taking down the deceivers. "It's as you said: the Klingon will to fight...pales in comparison to our own."

"Yes," Toman'torax, the bolder and second-in-command, agreed. "He has the look of a warrior, but the heart of a _coward_."

Worf's temper was easily broken much faster than any other species known. "If you would like to test my courage..." he fumed, ignoring Captain Sisko's pleas to calm down. Toman'torax was still testing him, enjoying every bit of it, it seemed.

"One day, the Klingon Empire will fall before the Jem'Hadar, and when that day comes, piles of Klingons will lie dead at my feet. I will think of you standing here, impotent and weak." By now he was directly in front of Worf, which proved to be the biggest mistake he'd ever make, even when he didn't care that it was. "And I will _laugh._ "

By this time, Worf threw himself at Tomak'torax, the latter grabbing his throat over the captain's shouts to stop this at once. He was aided by Omet'iklan. "Release the Klingon, or I will kill you where you stand!" he roared.

"Now," Sisko said angrily, "the two of you as you were. I promise, the more fight you both can have after this is over." Worf scowled but said nothing, turning to storm out and leaving the captain shaking his head at the disappointment left. Odo couldn't agree more; feuds were common, but not at a time like this.

~o~

Weyoun had been watching with Sisko and Omet'iklan as the crew - consisting of Constable Odo, Lt. Dax, Chief O'Brien, and Lt. Commander Worf himself - stormed the chamber of their "objective" in order to shoot down any Jem'Hadar who attempted to come onto them before they completed the necessary task. It was all a practice really, but the hesitation with the belief that a third one was still around - Dax, damn her hesitation - prompted the practice session to end. A weakness like that could very much cost them their lives if it were the real mission at hand.

"The crew failed the mission," Omet'iklan told them calmly.

"Well, then, you wouldn't mind telling us where the third was," Dax returned smoothly.

Sisko looked to Omet'iklan, baffled. "I don't understand. You told us the Jem'Hadar operated in teams. Such as a group of three."

"In battle, nothing is certain," Omet'iklan said sharply, then lifting a finger to the others below. "You should have armed the explosives as soon as you were in position." And Worf, the beastly man, opened his mouth to the "boss", Odo scowling up in return; Weyoun had to admit he found himself intrigued by the constable who had denied himself being a god like the other shape-shifters.

"We had to make sure the room was secure," Worf stated. "Otherwise, someone could have disarmed the explosives the moment we left."

"If you couldn't secure the room," Omet'iklan growled, "you should NOT plan on leaving it."

Miles O'Brien gaped at him. "You want us to blow the place up while we're still _in_ it?" he asked, mortified and disbelieved.

A part of Weyoun felt that the man had a point; what good would Captain Sisko be without his loyal crew making it out alive? Then he remembered the female Founder stating loud and clear that dying for the Dominion was the honorable thing, but that was the Dominion way of life. Omet'iklan sighed. "This is a waste of time," he told Sisko. "They'll _never_ succeed. At this moment, they value their lives more than victory."

Weyoun saw the disgruntled look on Sisko's face and tried his best to cheer him up a little. "A saying for soldiers who aren't afraid to die."

Sisko snorted. "Nothing keeps me alive more than a healthy fear of death. Keep practicing," he told the others below, "and the two of you with me." Weyoun followed him out and back into the turbolift along with Omet'iklan. Once they were away, Sisko began to berate the First Jem'Hadar. "One of the reasons we have these drills is to have the crew work _together_. Constantly showing contempt for my people is NOT making it any easier."

"Would you then prefer I lied?" Omet'iklan drawled.

"What I would _like,_ " Sisko returned, "is for you to pretend that we are on the same side."

"Captain," Weyoun started, following him in second and attempting to reason with him, "I understand your concerns, and so does Omet'iklan." He glared at his First, silently making him agree to disagree. Omet'iklan might be one of his most loyal guards, but his constant questioning his orders and decisions made him wish he could make him breathe his last with the Founder's permission.

"The only way my troops can respect your crew is to fight alongside them," Omet'iklan said finally, scaly face softening at last. "Mixed teams against every aspect of the mission."

Weyoun objected. This was not practical, their men with Sisko's. When asked why not, Weyoun hissed. "Are you questioning me?" His blood was on fire when Omet'iklan called him a fool in return.

"My men and I..." His voice bordered on a serpent's. "...we know ALL about the Gateway." Weyoun stiffened, keeping his rage mask in place, even more when Sisko ended the lift. The secret was out now, and the captain infuriated him when speaking the same words to him. Oh, he should have known better than to assume the secret would be kept hidden forever. But then again, it was Weyoun's idea to keep this from them, so as to assure their loyalty to him and the Dominion remained as it should.

"How do you know about the Gateway?" he demanded.

"It doesn't matter _how_ we know," Omet'iklan answered. "The point is we know. You think you have to lie to us - and use the white to ensure our loyalty? But the fact is we are loyal to the _Founders_ than the Vorta ever would be." How DARE he question the Vorta's loyalty to their creators? Weyoun wished he had the physical strength to kill him right here, right now, with Captain Sisko still watching them, who had been standing, watching and listening the whole time. "It is the _reason_ for our existence, the core of our being."

"Oh, there is a company of Jem'Hadar on Vandros IV who disagree with you," Weyoun sneered.

"And for that, they _will_ die."

How did he presume to think he believed the lowliest of both forms - the Jem'Hadar who were made to obey and escort, fight when told to - were the better favored and more obedient to the Dominion? They were no more civilized than the Vorta. Before he could speak, Sisko was there before him, having the final say. "Mixed teams it is, but let's get _one_ thing straight: this isn't going to be a suicide mission. As far as I'm concerned, everyone - Federation and Jem'Hadar alike - is going to come back alive."

His concerns were touching, but it better not stop them from achieving the objective. That was the only thing at the present Weyoun would agree with Omet'iklan. But that didn't stop his exuberant animosity for his defiant servant.

~o~

Thank God the briefing was over, because she was ready to join the others in the mess hall. Now wearing a white shirt and black pants and boots, hair held back by a black headband, as well as her opal and tanzanite necklace over her heart, and her two rings on her right hand - on her middle finger a nature inspiration of six leaves each set with a diamond, and on her third a majestic motif with three diamonds surrounded by smaller ones - she was about to enter the mess hall when she nearly ran into none other than the Vorta himself.

He looked down at her and smiled sweetly, though underneath that was a touch of warning. "I'd have thought the captain's daughter would watch where she was going by now."

Mia gulped but kept her eyes glued to his. He was here because he wanted to dispose of the rebel Jem'Hadar responsible for the damage done to the upper pylon and stealing science equipment, which meant business. How could someone important as him and as dangerous - his loyalty to the enemy was enough to say so - think about anything other than serving people that were nothing more than insecure, conquering beings who took it out on the "solids". As far as she knew, the Vorta and the Jem'Hadar had no choice but to do as they were told, bow down to the Founders as though they were the Greeks and the Founders were the gods and goddesses. Talk about slavery, and that was exactly what it was.

Strangely enough, Mia found herself wondering about this particular man who was still looking down at her, waiting for her answer. "I'm sorry, sir. I just couldn't wait to be here with everyone else."

He laughed. "Oh, none of that 'sir'. You can call me Weyoun if you wish." He looked her over. "Miss...Sisko, or can I call you by your first name?"

"It's Amelia," she answered, "but my family and friends call me Mia."

"Mia it is...ah, such a lovely name." His eyes were squinting slightly; did he have nearsight or something? She didn't know much about the Vorta other than the fact that they were made to serve the Changelings like the Jem'Hadar. "Would it be too straightforward if I can ask the lady to dine with me?" he asked.

She blinked; did he really ask her to have dinner with him? In front of everyone in the station? It was obvious nobody liked him because he represented the Dominion, but it was only dinner. Where was the harm in that? "I'd like to, yes," she answered. He nodded and bowed his head, extending his hand in the "lead the way" gesture. Such a gentleman. After getting their food - Mia noted he took mostly various fruits and nuts instead of meats - they sat at a table a little farther away from everyone else. Without turning to look, Mia felt everyone's eyes on her and felt like she was being criticized. She knew what they were thinking: what was she doing sitting with him? But this was her choice who to sit with.

"Weyoun," she started, unsure how to begin a conversation with him, "could you tell me how you're enjoying your time here?"

He was just bringing his fork with a slice of peach to his mouth when she asked him, pausing halfway and laughing at her question. "Well, not exactly what I expected to hear from you, but I suppose it's a start." Still chuckling, he finished off the bite and set his utensil down. "But yes, I admit I really am, and I would like to visit Deep Space 9 sometime, but sadly I won't be here much longer. I'm here only to take care of the traitors, but even I am now beginning to doubt the loyalty of Omet'iklan and his men - well, the First himself." He snorted and shook his head. "I'm sure your father briefed you on any of these matters, if you're even interested."

"He has," Mia answered, savoring the steak she'd gotten. "But your soldiers really unnerve me. I've met several beings in my life, only these Jem'Hadar scare me more than any Klingon - not counting Worf, of course," she added, feeling a tinge of heat to her cheeks. "So, I understand these guys can go really crazy without their white, am I right?"

Weyoun snickered at her interest in these things. "You are correct. The white is their source of survival, which means they don't live off what we do everyday, nor do they engage in recreation of any kind."

"What about females of their species?" she queried.

He blinked, staring at her before shaking his head. "No women, because these Jem'Hadar are bred in birthing chambers. Their lifespans differ from average, as well. They live up to twenty at most, but none have ever gone to thirty or beyond that. Jem'Hadar are very extraordinary, but they're also very crazed when they lose their precious white." He paused to look past her shoulder. Mia turned and followed his gaze, seeing Odo looking in their direction. With him at the same table were O'Brien, Worf and Dax. Looking back at Weyoun, she realized he considered Odo one of his gods even though the constable had nothing to do with however his people were treated.

"Odo isn't a god, you know," she reminded him, sipping her fruit juice.

He scoffed. "But he's a Changeling, which is near enough."

"To you and the Jem'Hadar, but not to me," Mia said smoothly. "He's right: the sooner you realize that, the better."

He looked at her reproachfully before footsteps approached them, and placed in between them was a case - and the one to do so was none other than Omet'iklan followed by his men. Weyoun stared at them blankly for a moment before the lead spoke. "It's time."

"It's _time_ ," Weyoun said, "when _I_ say it's time." Mia watched between him and the soldiers with soft amusement, seeing how Weyoun tried ignoring them by continuing his meal until the burning stares were too much. He sighed and wiped his mouth. "Very well." He then leaned into the case's speaker. "Prepare six vials." The case complied and then unlocked upon completion, at his command. "First, Omet'iklan, can you vouch for the loyalty of your men?" Mia had no idea what he meant before the First answered.

"We pledge our loyalty to the Founders, from now until death."

Weyoun had all six vials of white in his hand. "Then receive this reward from the Founders, and may it keep you strong." Each of them received one and left them both alone, but their time back to each other did not last long. Mia heard one of them walk over to the other table and demand that O'Brien resume the battle drill. She could tell he was the swagger of the lot, not caring he was starting trouble. She quickly stood up from her table with Weyoun and watched as Worf stood to defend the chief, punching the Jem'Hadar in the face.

"Hey, no!" she shouted, jumping over to try and stop them. Worf needed her even if he didn't, but too late, she realized what an idiot she was, because a stinging blow to her face sent her to the floor. Weyoun was by her side, setting down his case which had contained the ketracel-white to help her stand. Her face was red, she knew, and probably sporting a bruise later. Her father would lecture her later then. And speaking of which...

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Benjamin Sisko had entered the mess hall to break up the brawl. Everyone else stood aside and also held Worf back while the Jem'Hadar was helped up. "The one who pulls the next punch will answer to me; now I want to know who started this!"

Omet'iklan had come back into the room, setting his fierce eyes on his attacking soldier. "You...again," he fumed. "You knew my orders and yet you defied them. You deserve punishment, and you shall have it." And so he carried it out by grabbing the defying soldier and snapping his neck with a single stroke. The body collapsed in front of all in the mess hall. Mia was still rubbing her face when she looked at the corpse for a while longer and then to her father, who spoke furiously to Worf.

"Mr. Worf, when not on duty, you are confined to quarters for the remainder of this mission." His form of punishment seemed to anger Omet'iklan, and Worf agreed without any trouble before leaving the mess hall. When he was gone, Sisko turned his attention to everyone. "Alright, let's break this up. Get back to your stations or to your quarters. Either way, I want this room cleared. NOW!" His sudden outburst sent everyone out, and Mia knew she didn't want to be near him like this. She left the room in a hurry, surprised when Weyoun called her name.

"Mia! Oh, dear, Toman'torax did a number on you." His eyes were wide in shock at her face, in which she felt her skin still burning. "You could use some special treatment. Would you allow me to take you to my guest quarters so I can spare the good doctor the trouble after tonight?"

A part of her mind told her that this was a bad idea, joining the enemy in his guest room, but it wasn't like anything naughty was about to happen. "I would like that," she said instead.

~o~

Weyoun had been watching Odo ever since being beamed aboard the _Defiant_ , now aboard the station itself. Just his mere presence and air of superiority even though he was merely the chief of security thrummed his whole system to life, watching the god who denied that he was. Now that everyone was out of the mess hall after the brawl with Lt. Commander Worf and Second Toman'torax, Mia in his guest quarters, Weyoun felt he had to speak to the constable in the interest of his people. It was obvious that like others of his kind, Odo lived far apart from them, never knowing where he came from, but if only Weyoun could attempt to persuade him to come back to his people, perhaps form a wonderful working relationship with the Dominion so he would be able to see him more often...

"Odo," he called out from his doorway, "may I speak with you for a moment?"

"One moment," the Changeling stated gruffly, not pleased to see him. He hadn't liked the way the Vorta had been watching him, but Weyoun couldn't help himself really.

"You know I've been watching you."

"I've noticed." His face demanded that he get to the point.

"I have to admit that I find it somewhat...disturbing that you are working for these Federation people." Weyoun was cunning and manipulative, eager to get anything he wanted for himself and for his gods, and he knew it, but he wouldn't so much as physically hurt a fly. "Letting them order you around. You are a _Founder; you_ should be the one giving orders to _them._ To the Jem'Hadar. Or even me."

Odo was silent, considering his words, tempted to say the least. "So -" His voice was a tad rougher than Weyoun's own but actually possessed a wave of honesty and righteousness. "- if I order you to leave me alone, you will?"

Weyoun smiled halfway. "Of course. But..." He stopped the constable right away before he could leave him. "...before you do, please hear what I have to say." Odo said nothing, just watched him hard and gave him his cue to continue. "Your people want you to come home, Odo. No matter what differences you have with them, no matter what mistakes you may have made...they still love you."

Odo pondered this as well, but didn't relent. "Well, maybe they do," he answered, "but _I_ don't love them."

Weyoun stretched his senses and felt the jagged lines in the lie detector. He had little to no experience in family, but he knew that in so many cases of family, just because they shared the same blood did not mean they were family. That went for Odo and his own people, marking him the black sheep. Yet deep down he wanted nothing more than to set things right. Weyoun's face split into a knowing smile as he saw right through the denial. "You're lying, and you're not very good at it. I, on the other hand, am an expert at lies, both in telling them as well as the truth and in spotting them, so you'll might as well admit the truth. More than anything in your life, you want to return to your people...and I can make that possible."

"How?" Odo questioned, now interested.

Weyoun's mouth twitched; it was working. "Let me worry about the 'how'. All I need to know is...are you _ready_ to go home?"

"No," Odo answered firmly, "but I _am_ ready to end this conversation." There was never the need for forcing the truth out of anyone; there was plenty of time to get it. Even Weyoun knew that himself.

"Then it's over. After all, you _are_ a Founder, and I live to serve you." Odo said nothing, just watched as the Dominion operative turned and vanished through the doorway which he had his own guest quarters - unknowing to the constable at the time, Mia Sisko was waiting for the Field Supervisor.

 **Truly amazing, Weyoun is. :) He's so graceful, poised, handsome, ruthless, manipulative, yet loyal. No wonder the fans loved him, and no wonder Jeff enjoyed playing him so much. And Odo is a delightful being himself, Rene Auberjonois a remarkable human being himself in real life and as hilarious as the other man himself.**


	4. Longing to Be Free

**The song "Anywhere" by Evanescence is really the song which set the foundation for the whole story. :) This chapter is named for a certain line in the song for a change, and the lyrics will appear at some point later on. A chapter later on might be named the same title as the song itself. If anyone wants to hear it on YouTube, feel free to check it out. :D Beautiful tune and all!**

Chapter Three

Longing to Be Free

Mia noticed how the Vorta didn't have it in him to decorate his guest room for his liking, before she realized he didn't have much of any taste for style. She'd been sitting on the loveseat near the door, and that was when she heard the duration of his and Odo's conversation. He was attempting to persuade Odo to return to his people, a bunch of shape-shifting creatures who hated solid beings. These creatures desired to conquer because of how solids persecuted them long ago for unknown reasons; the shape-shifters' embitterness was the result of what they were today.

She decided to distract herself by reaching up to play with her necklace, taking in the rainbow hues dancing against pearly white, surrounded by exquisite liquid blue stones her mother called "romance rarer than diamonds", a saying said before. "What's that?" She jumped, not sensing Weyoun reach her side. He sat down beside her and looked at her charm in puzzlement. "Interesting trinket."

"It's a necklace," she told him. "From my father on my last birthday before he died."

His brows furrowed as he frowned. "So...you're not really Captain Sisko's offspring, by blood. I should have guessed given you look nothing like him."

"I'm adopted," Mia answered, letting her necklace drop back against her chest. "I lost my mother to cancer, and I was eighteen when my real father was killed in service, the same time as Benjamin's wife. He and my dad were best friends and comrades, and for me to lose him and Ben to lose the love of his life was what brought us together. I always loved him and looked up to him as a second father, never picking one over the other. His son is like a real brother to me." She looked him in the eyes. "But I don't think a member of the enemy side would know the true definition of family, right?"

He looked wounded, and she could read it right through him. He didn't understand really, didn't really care about anyone, and it sickened her. So this was a first. Plus, why did she still have this lingering feeling he left on her, the one she couldn't help no matter how hard she tried?

"You're right. I don't, but that won't stop me from trying to understand. You see..." He had the far-off look in his eye even though he was really focused. "...as you understand, duty comes before emotion, which isn't something that all of my people who serve the Founders have the time for."

Mia snorted. "I see. I wish I understood that more clearly. I work in a bar, where every day I keep the balance between business and personal, though my boss is more interested in profit, as you would have guessed." She stood up and walked over to the mirror on the wall behind her, seeing her face still kind of red, but she would have dark purple bruises for awhile. But at least Weyoun was kind enough to let her wash her face.

He followed her, now standing beside her. "Your father's going to question your bravery to interfere," he noted. "I must say, you...carry a fire of arrogance in you. Serious, loyalty and resourceful, but mingled with intelligence, kindness, honesty, a sense of humor, as well as timidity." He was smiling down at her. "I can smell and sense all at once in you." She stiffened when there was the sound of his nostrils flaring as he breathed in her scent. "Mmm, may I ask what you smell of?" She was about to answer when she caught his pale cheeks blushing a soft pink, which she found cute. "I apologize for that. It's just that I've never..."

"It's gardenias, white roses, exotic woods and musk," she told him. "It's name is _Goddess_. Do the Vorta have a good sense of eyesight and smell?"

His face fell. "Not quite. It's not enhanced in our senses. The Founders never seemed to deem it useful in our daily lives."

Figured. "What a shame," she said, looking away from him and back into the mirror.

"I think so, sometimes," he answered. "But, it's not in our place to question the Founders."

She seethed; to question gods was understandable enough, but he was so blind to the fact that the Founders weren't gods as they wanted him to believe. "Well, have you ever wanted to be free, Weyoun?" she dared to ask. "Be away from those shape-shifters, be yourself, or at least devote yourself to something that truly made you happy?"

~o~

They were now approaching Vandros, and Chief O'Brien was handing out phaser rifles to everyone. Weyoun was with the captain as he surveyed each man who took his weapon. But when it came to Omet'iklan, he could only spend his time glaring at his supposed loyal soldier. Pledge loyal to the Founders, his end side. But being angry at his traitorous Jem'Hadar didn't erase his time with the captain's daughter last night.

Appreciating art was out of his expertise, but to appreciate the looks of Mia was another matter. Her soft face framed with long hair covering both her ears, her lithe, strong and alluring form for someone who claimed to work in a bar of all places...goddess could be the best word to call her, but not in the sense of the female Founder herself. When staring into her eyes, Weyoun thought of the odd but visually attractive combination - her right eye was a soft woody brown, the left a vivid blue like the waters of Kurill Prime. Her nose was slender, her lips plump and pale pink like any flower coming to mind...

He tried laughing off the idea she was a witch casting a spell on him, turning him into a new, different being altogether. He tried to shove her to the back of his mind for the remainder of the mission; it wasn't like he might see her again anyway. If anything would happen to him, he would be cloned again, which wasn't a knowledge she knew along with his gods - or did she?

Omet'iklan and his men were finished with receiving their weapons, and as soon as the men other than the First himself was gone, Weyoun looked between the Federation captain and his chief of operations with a proud smile. "Well, this is a momentous occasion. The first joining between the Federation and the Dominion. I can't wait to see how it turns out."

And Omet'iklan had the nerve to start the word of battle, interrupting Sisko's order to beam down. "As of this moment, we're all dead. We go into battle to reclaim our lives. This we do gladly, for we are Jem'Hadar. Remember: victory is _life_."

The men repeated the last line. "Victory is life."

Weyoun allowed a small smile to grace his face. They might know about him keeping the secret of the Gateway from them, found out eventually despite his efforts, but they still did him proud. They were men willing to fight and die for a cause, not an honor all men and women considered every day. Such a delightful people, indeed.

And then Chief O'Brien amused him by telling him, Captain Sisko, and the rest of the men that he was very much alive and intended to stay that way, before being interrupted by the captain. "Let's get it done."

He followed them. As a member of the Dominion, he would risk his life for his people and his gods. He would do anything asked of him, and destroy the one thing which was the key to the freedom of the Jem'Hadar, the creatures made to serve and protect, as the Vorta were made to serve and protect.

But he could not shake off Mia's question of freedom. What did he truly know about freedom? He put his life and career to the Dominion and ignored everything else, but Mia Sisko left a mark on him he might not be able to forget, which would be carried onto his next incarnation.

~o~

She'd been waiting on the bridge of the _Defiant_ with the rest of the crew, pacing back and forth anxiously until one of the men assured her that everyone would be all right. Weyoun had been there with her, choosing to remain on board until the fighting was over. "I have complete faith they will make it," he promised her, and for a moment, she actually believed his words. Looking into his soft violet eyes, she felt like she was melting. They possessed a sensuous beauty that you didn't see everyday, fitting his physical features perfect. Her body felt like it was on the verge of being overheated -

"Oh, dear," she whispered, quickly drawing back when she realized too late how close his face was to hers. Enough to _kiss_ her.

He frowned again, brows furrowed. "Pardon?"

"You're leaning in closer than expected," she said in a lowered voice so the crew around them couldn't hear. No one was paying attention anyways, but she still felt really awkward. She couldn't tell him that he was close enough to kiss her, that she suddenly wanted to know how his lips felt exactly on her - and then he spoke to everyone aboard that he and she were excusing themselves for the moment, which baffled her. He then took her by the wrist and led her out of the area and around the corner. Her eyes widened; what was going on here, and why was this happening? She was a Federation affiliate and the daughter of the captain, and he was associated with the Dominion as its operative; they were enemies, and enemies shouldn't want to kiss the other - oh, too late. He'd leaned in to capture her mouth with his.

A ravishing tingle started innocently before flaring into something more, like her body was on real fire; it consumed her and melted her into him. He wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her in. He was designed to serve a powerful empire and nothing else, love and worship his gods and no one else. But he was also drawing her into the magical pool which washed all conscious thought and made her think of him, and only him. "Mmm," he purred against her mouth, making her giggle even more when he squeezed her hips and moved up to caress her small back, wanting to remove this from her and finally be able to touch her soft flesh...

He stopped abruptly and pulled away, disappointed and to know she felt the same. "No, I don't think we should," he said softly. "I know I wanted to do this with you, but..." Her hopes were suddenly on the rise, but she tried to shove them down again when he went on. "We're on opposite sides. I'm not suppose to kiss the enemy captain's daughter, and Vorta stick to their own kind even if we choose to find a match. Mating with non-Vorta is very rare."

Mia had to agree with him. Chances were she might never see him again, and she wasn't a silly young girl with an infatuation. And then he was called to the bridge. The Gateway had been destroyed. She felt happiness and pride surge for her father and the others, and Weyoun could barely contain himself, too. "Oh, how wonderful!" He then turned behind her to pick up the case of ketracel-white. "Ah, beam me down there. I must congratulate them, offer my men their reward, and inspect any of the dead lost."

Sadly, that WAS the last time she would ever see him.

"Daddy!" she cried. "Odo, Chief O'Brien, everyone!" She ran over and hugged him, his embrace tighter than normal, before moving onto the others. The Jem'Hadar were nowhere to be found, as well as their Vorta master. "You destroyed it."

"We did," her father told her, "but the Jem'Hadar chose to stay behind to handle the rest of the traitors."

"And Weyoun?" she asked, looking at everyone else, seeing the grim faces. Odo was the one to answer for her.

"Vaporized, for questioning his men's loyalty."

She didn't show anyone how she really felt, only nodded with a tight face and outwardly pleased that the Gateway - one of the most dangerous tools in the galaxy - was vanquished, but she felt like a part of her was gone with Weyoun. It had felt like it was the start of something when they had only just met...it was something she'd never felt before in her life, nothing like a teenage girl with a silly crush on an older man. He might have been serving the enemy, but he had awakened something in her that made her believe she could have actually persuaded him to give up his life of servitude and live as she was. No one else seemed to notice how she took the news of Weyoun's death, but Odo was looking at her much longer as though reading something.

 **The mention of Vorta clinging to their own kind makes sense very much, but rarely turned their eyes to other species. This idea was inspired by "Immortal Beloved", as well.**

 **Also, there you have it with the reference to "Anywhere". :D More parts to come. It really fits Weyoun and Mia, make their love story more believable.**


	5. Body Parts and a Baby Transfer

**Since Weyoun is out of the picture for now, this chapter will mostly focus on Mia and her relationship with Quark, Rom and Kira Nerys, especially during her surrogate pregnancy for Miles O'Brien and his wife. This is a foreshadow for Mia later on in the story, and the start of wonder as to what it might be like to have a child someday. :) Named after the episode "Body Parts", will continue into the next chapter which will eventually end with the due date.**

Chapter Four

Body Parts and a Baby Transfer

Mia turned twenty-four today, and she was celebrating in Quark's bar with him when he returned from business on Ferenginar. So that was two things to celebrate: her twenty-fourth birthday with her boss and fellow dabo girls, some of the crew members of DS9 - though she and her father would have dinner later since right now he was busy, as well as Chief O'Brien, Lt. Dax and Worf, and Dr. Bashir and Kira along with Keiko O'Brien still away in the Gamma Quandrant to settle some messy business on Torad V. Well, Keiko wanted to study the mysterious botany of the system, and her husband had been against it given she was just a few months short of having their second child. Dressed in her favorite light blue top and skirt, she joined Rom on her break when it came to his seating at the bar.

Quark seemed to be in a delightfully good mood this evening when he came up to them both. "Ah, Mia just started your break now, did you? Well, nothing against you tonight since you're the birthday girl," he told her with a pat on her small back. "Not every day all my workers receive such good treatment. And Rom!" He moved over and threw his arms around him from behind. "My brother, I've missed you. Let me pour you a glass of snail juice. And if the lady herself could use one, too," he offered to Mia. She politely refused; Ferengi beverages weren't exactly her favorite, and she never did like snails. Quark didn't seem bothered, instead serving up her favorite Bajoran kava juice.

And Rom, sweet and "idiotic" - his brother's words - as he was, agreed to the snail juice. "Oh, okay, but only one. My shift starts in thirty-three minutes."

Quark laughed as he began to mix the concoction. "I'm making it a tall one, and it is _on the house_ , because we're celebrating. Both my return AND this one's entering a new age," he said with a nod to Mia still beside Rom, one of the sweetest beings she'd ever known. Rom might act like a child sometimes, but he was the younger brother, so what do you expect?

"Very rare do you serve on the house, boss," she told him with her mouth twitching. "Unless it actually means something."

Rom's eyes were narrowed slightly, unconvinced. "We're celebrating Mia's birthday, but _why_ are we celebrating your return?"

His older brother looked down at him, slightly flabbergasted. "We're celebrating my return from Ferenginar and you didn't miss me?!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, of course we did!" Mia said happily, taking another sip of her juice and nudging Rom. "Didn't you miss your big brother?" she joked, knowing the answer was sometimes. Also, what did you expect of brothers who worked together?

"I-I guess so," Rom answered timidly.

"And _I_ missed you both," Quark declared, finishing the mixing and handing it over to his brother. "That's three reasons for celebrating. Enjoy." He watched as his brother took a drink before asking, "Just the way you like it?"

"Perfect!"

"Same here," Mia added. Hers didn't even taste like alcohol, just more fruity. And THAT was the way she liked it herself. "So, how was your trip? Closed the deal?"

Her boss chuckled and sat down with a beverage of his own, probably a Starduster or a Synthehol. "Oh, yeah," he said happily. "Closed it on the first day and got fifteen percent profit."

"Oh, that's great!" Rom said. "Did you see Moogie?"

At the questioning of their domineering mother, Quark ceased his sips. "Mother sends her love," he said densely. Talking about Moogie who was long separated from their father was an unwanted topic for him, and Rom knew it, so he changed the subject.

"What else did you do?"

"Well, let's see, uh...besides closing the deal, I did some shopping, and then I found out, uh..." He paused right there and shifted his whole body so he was facing them, but with his struggles to breathe and attempt at perfect vocabulary, Mia felt like her heart was clenching, and it burst when her boss finally blurted it out for the whole bar to hear.

"I'm DYING!"

~o~

All eyes had been on Quark when he made the accidental announcement to the whole bar. Even his brother who asked dumbfoundedly, "You're...dying?" His grip on the glass had become so tight Mia thought he would shatter his favorite drink. Mia felt like her world was falling while still spinning.

Her boss was...dying. He nodded. "I got my results, and they came back negative except for one: I have Dorek Syndrome."

Dorek Syndrome was a very rare, very deadly Ferengi disease, with just only a few days left of life. But how could he have it? Quark was healthy as an ox, as far as she'd known him in her time here. "But," Rom sputtered out, "that's _incurable!_ "

Mia had to laugh without humor with his brother; of course it was incurable. Any rare disease was the worst because the inflicted had their time end. "That's right, which explains the dying part," Quark said haughtily. "It's rare, strikes one out of every five million Ferengi. And _I_ finally beat the odds." He turned away from them to stare down at his drink which Mia suspected he might not finish. "And according to Dr. Orpax, I have six days left; maybe seven."

"Is he sure?!"

"Of _course_ he's sure! He's the most expensive doctor on Ferenginar; he charges two slips of latinum just to walk into the waiting room." Quark half-doubled over and laughed at what he thought was the most absurb thing in the medical world on his home planet.

And Rom was still busy with his laments. "This is terrible! I don't want you to die, brother! Maybe you should get a second opinion," he added, "like, have Dr. Bashir examine you when he gets back from the Gamma Quadrant." Mia wasn't sure how she was going to have herself in the conversation anymore since the two Ferengi brothers were too busy, before she decided a small part was a start.

"Yeah, Julian can vouch. You know he's the best on the station." It didn't matter if a doctor was good depending on charge or not; whether they were successful or not was the important part. But her boss snorted at the suggestion.

"Dr. Bashir - how good could he be? He doesn't even charge. And besides..." He leaned in, smiling like a sinister madman. "...what could a human doctor know about Dorek Syndrome?"

Rom burst out crying, the sight so heartbreaking Mia felt her own crack for real, and she let the poor Ferengi lean into her as he wailed, "You're going to _die..._ " His brother went on speaking about taking care of everything he had left in six days: his will, Moogie's pension, funeral arrangements, and all his debts. He had a lot of those, and most of them were to the humans he owed, as well as Bajorans and a couple of Klingons.

"Rule of acquisition number seventeen: a contract is a contract IS a contract," Rom cited once he'd gotten himself together. "But only between Ferengi."

Mia looked up at the time and saw her break up. She quickly finished her drink and excused herself to get back to work. The last thing she heard before she joined the next dabo table for a new round was Rom suggesting to his brother that he should sell his vacuum-desiccated remains on the Ferengi Futures Exchange. Her stomach lurched; who on earth would want her boss' dead body for sale?

When her shift ended, she could still hear the two brothers arguing over Quark putting his remains up but decided tonight was enough. It was her birthday, and this was one hell of a way to celebrate it: the news of her Ferengi employer diagnosed with terminal illness. She made her way to the bridge to visit her father and the others because she had nothing better to do.

And just when things couldn't get any worse.

"Captain!" Dax called out. "Something is coming through the wormhole."

The screen showed the sizzling blue wormhole - ironic it was called that way like the holes for worms on Earth because of similar reasons of use - and a ship exiting. When magnified, Mia recognized along with Worf the _USS Volga_. The very same runabout Bashir, Kira and Keiko O'Brien took with them. To its rear end, it was blazing orange, showing damage. "Dr. Bashir is requesting emergency transport to the infirmary," Worf told Sisko.

Mia had it in her to walk up to him. "The injured?" she asked worriedly, even though she knew before he answered.

"Major Kira...Keiko O'Brien."

~o~

They'd accidentally come across an asteroid field on the way back to Deep Space 9, and she'd almost had them cleared when the deflectors became overwhelmed. She was lucky to not have suffered bad enough damage to her body, but it had made her all the more concerned for Keiko since she was with child. She'd been through more than Kira Nerys, but she was going to be all right, thanks to Julian. But the baby wasn't so lucky unless he acted right away and performed the operation, transferring the fetus from Keiko's womb into Nerys', since she was the only one available. But the other had been Julian, and he was a man, which made her laugh at the idea of a man having a child, which was unheard of.

Nerys had never thought of having a child or even considered getting married, at least night right now. Things with her and Shakaar were very well on the right track, but matrimony wasn't currently on the list. And now she was going to have a baby - well, not HER own; she was merely acting as surrogate for her friends, the O'Briens. Keiko was in the other room, still undergoing surgery, and Bashir was currently running extra tests on Nerys in the aftermath of the transfer. Keiko had been thrown against the bulkhead, then suffered a concussion, broken ribs and internal bleeding.

The door to the operating room swished open, and Miles O'Brien stormed in worriedly. "Keiko's fine," Nerys assured him. "She's still in surgery, but she'll be all right."

His features softened, but - "The baby?"

"Baby's fine," she answered. "It just..." She paused, wondering how she was going to explain to him. "...had a change of address, that's all." He looked at her puzzled before she showed him herself, pushing the covers down to show her now rounded stomach. For a human mother, she'd be about six months along with this size growth.

"Your son's living here now."

"Major!" She looked to the doorway and saw Mia standing there, horrified. "Oh, God, I was afraid for both you and -" She paused, her eyes falling to the exposed bulge. "Kira, are you-?"

She nodded and beckoned the girl closer. Mia had turned twenty-four Terran years today, and Nerys had felt terrible not being in time today. She'd tried for her, Julian and Keiko to make it back in time because today was important to this girl who was close enough to family to her. Her father was a good friend even if his status as her religion's Emissary still made it slightly awkward, but Mia was more free-spirited and wild at heart despite the responsible woman she was. She sat beside Nerys, smiling at Miles who returned it briefly before leaving them both to check on his wife. "How's Keiko?" she asked, placing her hand on her swollen belly.

"Stabilized," Nerys answered, putting her hand over Mia's. "Thank the gods Julian did his magic." She sighed and leaned back. "But I'm having their baby, so I don't know what to expect until it's born. I'm expecting the usual Bajoran symptoms of sneezing and the likes."

Mia laughed. "Human women are known to get nauseated in the mornings, which is what we call morning sickness. I even read that while we're known to go through nine whole months, sometimes earlier, your people have five months."

"Because our gestation periods are shorter."

Julian nodded as he helped her settle in. She would be back on her feet soon, but resting was required first. "Mother and child form complex connections, which means that the baby can't go back to Keiko. You'll have to carry it full term."

Mia's gaze darted back and forth. "Does Miles know this?"

He shook his head. "Not yet, but I'll tell him soon. However, I don't think he'll take it well when I tell him that if his son is removed sooner than birth, massive internal hemorrhaging will take place, as well as severe respiratory trauma for the child. We can't let that happen to either of you," he told Nerys. She nodded, fully prepared but still nervous. Being a surrogate mother - a mother _period_ \- was still so new to her.

Mia was still looking at the bulge that was "her" child. "I've always dreamed of getting married and having a baby, but it also scares me," she said softly. "But I guess that's natural. It's painful, and it begs the question as to how you can love something, or someone, that hurts you so much." Nerys burst out laughing with Julian; pain didn't frighten her anymore, because Mia was right. Would anyone really want a baby the size of her father's baseball? But Bajorans had it easier than humans did, yet she would end up forgetting to tell her that until later. Julian left them alone, so Nerys was comforted by the birthday girl who told her about her day, as well as bringing up how it didn't end as happily as she wanted it to be, including learning of her and Keiko - as well as the situation with her boss, Quark.

~o~

Feeling like she and the now pregnant Kira owed a visit to Keiko O'Brien, Mia suggested they pay her a visit. Nerys was thrilled and agreed with her, so together, they found her sitting upright and looking in their direction. "Julian says I'll be back on my feet in a few days," she told them. "And happy birthday to you," she said to Mia, laughing softly. "I'm sorry you had to know we came back this way."

Mia walked over and sat on the foot of the bed. "But it wasn't your fault. Or either of you," she told Nerys. "Anything happens, and we're not supposed to expect it." She found herself looking at Keiko's flattening abdomen. Depending on how much weight put on during pregnancy, it might take awhile to get back to normal. In Keiko's case, she might take it easier, but to know she wasn't carrying her own baby anymore was so heartwrenching.

"How are you?" she asked Nerys, who laughed and joined Mia's side.

"Fine, except I think I put on a little weight," she joked.

Keiko nodded. "You carry it well," she noted, her voice now having a tired edge. "You know, what you're doing for me - for _us_ ," she added, bringing her husband in now, "I don't know how to thank you."

"Oh..." Nerys was blown away by such gratitude. Very rarely did Mia see the major so emotionally touched, and it was that much important between two or more people who meant more to each other than anything in the world. She then reached over to take Keiko's hand and placed it on her stomach, where the baby was resting until his day came. "Keiko...this is _your_ baby." She made the real mother laugh and cry at the same time, and it made Mia wonder if she would ever truly feel that way someday. There were so many men on the station, but she never found the time for dating...and it had been less than a year since the loss of a certain dazzling violet-eyed alien who kissed her and took her breath away when it should be out of line.

"I was telling her earlier, I wonder what it will be like to have a child of my own someday," she told Keiko, who looked her way and laughed again.

"Well, Mia, it's hard to describe, but it's the most wonderful feeling ever, feeling them stir inside you until the day comes when they arrive, and that means a new title for you, which is mother. And it's natural to be afraid because this is a major step for you in life, and I remember that way when Molly came along. But it also means so much love you want to give and receive back when they grow, and always making sure they're all right and have everything they need. It's an emotion like no other, and even your husband will share it with you." By the time she finished, a tear rolled down her cheek, making Kira do the same - and now Mia felt her throat narrow as she tried to fight back her own at the magic of the words of advice of future motherhood.

~o~

The next day, Kira packed lightly due to her now aching back and arrived at the quarters of the O'Briens. She'd had dinner the night before which involved more talk of motherhood in exactly the same as she and Mia had; she would have to get used to this, she thought with a laugh. Molly had been that way with Keiko, and now Nerys knew what that felt like.

She had objected to being here simply because she didn't want to impose, but now she was considered family because she was surrogate, and she had no idea how to really feel other than honored. Molly was a sweet little angel, and if this is what a child was like...

Now she was moving in with them, all for them to be closer to their unborn son. She liked to think that she did this for them, but at the same time, it was really bittersweet. Because little Molly looked up to her as an aunt the same way Mia Sisko looked at her like both a mother and a best friend in the same sentence. Her life was now beginning to feel like she was missing something.

 **The beginning of the upcoming chapter has some Brunt trouble. ;D**


	6. Tears

**In one of his "DS9 Season 5 Hidden Files" video interviews, Jeffrey Combs described one of his other characters, Brunt, as the "IRS guy from hell, who came back after audit after audit after audit, making Quark's life just miserable". They are exactly Mia's words in the beginning...and oh, boy she's gonna get a taste of his creepiness more than she did Weyoun.**

 **We're finally getting ahead where Kira is near the end of her pregnancy. I wanted to explore that further, but at the same time, people who saw the show might be able to make the ties well. This story is Mia's story as well as Weyoun's - once we get him back - so I wanted to get to the good part where Mia is by Kira's side when the baby comes, and so Mia can get the idea of holding a child.**

Chapter Five

Tears

Quark was going to live; he'd broadcasted it not long after selling his "vacuum-desiccmated remains" to the FFE and then learning from Julian about a call from his doctor on Ferenginar that it was a misdiagnosis, but even that didn't stop the "anonymous bidder" who turned out to be Brunt, the Ferengi Commerce Authority, from attacking him and threatening him. Mia seethed as she worked that day as usual, wearing her favorite costume and "charming" the male players while keeping her notorious seductress' smile on her face. Brunt was the IRS guy from hell, always coming back to make her boss' life miserable, and he really did it this time. He'd threatened to cut Quark off, make his mother live on the street, as well as take his bar away from him. Once that happened, it meant not only everyone else in this place losing their job, but Mia as well...and the station losing one of its most crucial sources of prosperity and joy.

Mia had no idea what she would do if her job was lost, once the bar was closed. It would hurt Quark, too, because he was tempted to break the Ferengi contract, which would be the end of it. Rom was even frightened out of his wits, scared for his own brother's life - which had been Brunt's idea of having himself killed so he could collect what he wanted, calling it personal business because Quark "gave other Ferengi a bad name". She snarled angrily; her employer might not be the nicest man like his brother, but he was decent and fair enough. But that didn't mean he deserved death because he was not like the others of his kind. If she had it in her, she would take a phaser and smoke the hell out of -

"Would the lady be so kind as to offer me a few minutes of her time?"

She gulped and turned around to see the beast himself sitting there at an empty table, hands in front of him and elevating his chin and looking at her in a way that she wasn't surprised with, but it nauseated her. "Brunt, FCA," she stated coolly, marching over to him and leaning over.

His mean little beady eyes adverted down south and looked at the curves her chest boasted. "So, you know me," he said, clearly amused. Not only did he look like a toad, but he sounded like one. Someone who enjoyed making any Ferengi's life a living hell, especially Quark's.

"Of course. The tax man from the lower depths of hell," Mia answered, dropping her professional self by a level. "Everyone knows you, or you should be flattered?"

His hand was on hers, and she stiffened at his unexpected move, even when he took her hand and raised it to his eyes. "I'm not surprised, not even to know that a simple dabo girl has it in her to challenge me." His eyes sparkled mischievously as they took in her small, dainty hand, and his thick, black-tipped fingers parted each of her own. "I find it surprising that someone with such long, slender and nimble fingers has never practiced -"

"Brunt."

Quark was standing there, glaring murderously at the Ferengi who often came to humiliate him in every way he would. But it made Brunt laugh. "Come to beg for your life?"

Quark looked at Mia briefly and jerked his head to the side once, insisting she leave them alone. She did, but remained close enough to detect their conversation at the bar. Her heart dropped literally when she saw him return the latinum amount and informed Brunt that he was actually breaking the contract; in response, Brunt burst out laughing at the possibility of his win of the battle. How dare he call Quark "weak, low, degenerate" like his family? She was about to rise when he stood and left Quark alone, raising his voice for all to hear.

"May I have your attention, please? Brunt, FCA! As of this moment, no Ferengi commerce may be conducted in this bar. No Ferengi may be employed by this bar, no Ferengi may eat or drink in this bar." He was walking to the front doorway when he continued. "And no Ferengi - NO Ferengi may do business with _that man!_ "

He pointed to Quark, shaming him on sight in front of all his customers, in front of everyone he worked so hard to come and enjoy themselves in his place of ownership. Then he turned and placed a legal document to his left, on the other side of the doorway, preventing anymore Ferengi from doing as he voiced them not to. Quark was done for, but oh, no, not on Mia's watch. Brunt could order the assets taken away and the customers, everything, but he would answer to her now. Mia jumped off and was prepared to punch him when another grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "Amelia, stop this!" Rom whispered harshly, desperately, fueling her raging blood and nerves. "Mia, please, he's not worth it. You can take on anyone else but him."

Brunt's laugh got her back to him. "You better listen to him, dabo girl. Because I charge those who dare physically attack me." And with that, he was out the door, after his announcement of the confiscation of the assets beginning immediately. He eyed Quark like a hungry devil until the latter emotionlessly spoke to the rest of his guests.

"Ladies and gentlemen, this bar is now closed...until further notice."

While everyone was leaving, Mia shouted over while struggling to get away from dear Rom, "My father is captain of this station, and if he had the authority, he'd arrest you for this!" But Brunt only laughed again and took his leave. "Let me go, Rom!" she snapped, finally jerking free. "Quark, that bastard is really getting away with it...!"

"And there is nothing I can do," he said firmly. "This bar's done. _I'm_ done. So, that means, Mia - my favorite girl -" He walked over to put his hand on her shoulder. "- go home for now. You'll be fine until this is over."

She snorted. "And what then?" she spat, a new idea already dawning in her head. "Sitting and moping never solves anything." She turned and stalked out, hearing the doors close but didn't stop to look back. To do so would hurt very much, but it wouldn't last. She needed to speak to her father and the rest of the station about all of this.

"Odo!" She was happy that she found him at this time. "Just the man I wanted to find first."

He raised a thin, barely there eyebrow. "Am I?"

"You, Daddy, and the rest of the crew," she answered.

"Mia, what's going on?"

"Oh, Dad, there you are," she said proudly, then raised her voice for the whole station to here. "I suppose all of you know by now Quark's bar is unjustly closed by the Ferengi Commerce Authority. He ruined Quark's life over a greedy need for Quark's remains due to a misdiagnosis of a rare Ferengi terminal illness. Thereby Quark broke free from Ferengi contract to save himself, but look at what it cost him." She looked around with swelling, heated pride at the attention she was receiving. "One place which is part of the breath of life in this station we have worked so hard over four years to build. Do you really want it to just be confiscated by some sadistic Ferengi businessman who takes relish in making everyone's lives miserable? You want to let the man we might not be too fond of but look to in anytime we need him, whether we like it or not?" She straightened her posture and stuck her chest and chin out to make herself more dignified. "I say we start by pitching in and making Quark's bar thriving again with or without Ferengi ties. So, are you all in - or are you out?"

Everyone was looking at each other in consideration, and part of her was beginning to think maybe this was a bad idea after all. But then, moments later, she was surprised by the two words they said in unison.

"We're in."

~o~

Experiencing a pregnant Kira Nerys was an adventure for Odo. He'd seen her tongue-tied and sharp-tempered before, but this time pregnancy enhanced all of that. He had little experience with women, but Miles who had a wife filled him in, even if Bajoran women differed from human women. There were times Odo would hear Kira sneeze constantly; human women were known to be ill in the mornings. These two separate species were the same in appearance except for the Bajorans having ridged noses, and physiology was faster developed than humans. Odo still had yet to learn despite living a long time around both races.

Three weeks after Kira was rescued from Silaran Prin, Odo was suddenly experiencing pain in his back. Thank goodness she and the baby were okay; he admired her courage, but she put not only herself but also the O'Briens' child at risk. She'd lost her oldest friends who had been a part of what she dedicated her whole life for, and that was to take Bajoran back for its people - and as a result, an embittered, deformed old Cardassian who exiled himself took his revenge against them, took "justice" into his own hands. He was a misguided vigilante who didn't see that his people committed crimes; he had said that innocents had to be protected, but as Nerys said as quote of Prin, "innocence is an excuse for the guilty".

Odo groaned as he hobbled into Julian Bashir's office. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought he had Alvanian spine mites. Common in humanoid species, able to cause spinal pain. But he had to make sure with the good doctor, who greeted him that morning. "And what can I do for you today, Constable?" he asked cheerily.

Odo snorted as he walked over to the examination bed. "Oh, it's my back. It happened this morning when I got out of bed." He groaned again when he sat down so Bashir could scan him. "I have Alvanian spine mites, don't I? I'll be in pain for the rest of my life..."

"Actually..." Julian confirmed. "...you have a pinched nerve."

Odo looked up in surprise. "Really?" He did not ever remember having anything of a pinched nerve in his life.

"It comes from a bad posture."

"Me? Ridiculous. Never seen anyone sit so straight." Odo wanted nothing more than to wave this silly explanation off and forget about the whole thing now.

"Exactly. You carry yourself too rigidly." He presumed to think he, Constable Odo, took himself too straight? That was how he'd _always_ carried himself. "You haven't always had a spinal column, you know. You're not a Changeling anymore. Now that you're a humanoid, you have to relax."

"That's what you said last week," Odo said gruffly, folding his arms across his chest. "And it helped. That, and the prune juice." Julian was now walking his way and administered a muscle relaxant, and when the effects took place, a wave of pleasure washed over Odo's body, and the pain was lessening.

"Back trouble?"

Odo glared at the unwanted "visitor" in the doorway. "It's none of your concern, Quark."

The Ferengi continued, undaunted. "Bad posture."

"Would you get out of here?" Odo growled, wanting to have his appointment with Bashir alone now, like before. The doctor gave him his suggestion as though the bartender wasn't there.

"What you need is a stretching regime. Worf's morning excercise should be just the thing."

"I get that, too," Quark said, the insolent fool. "I've got a holosuite program that will take care of it. Three Orion slave girls strapped to -" Odo lost his temper then.

"QUARK!"

Julian looked amused at all of this but decided to take his leave anyway. And Quark was still smirking, making Odo's nerves rattle all the more. "Well, go ahead. Suffer."

Odo rolled his eyes. "What do you want?" He hadn't all day, and he had a life and a job to get back to. He didn't need any of Quark's aggravating troubles right now.

Undisturbed by the resentment, Quark answered him. "A Yridian I've been dealing with has something that _might_ interest you." Odo scoffed it off; what could possibly interest him that had been bought by some smuggler? "You don't even know what it is," Quark insisted.

"I know I don't _want_ it," Odo snapped.

"In that case, you can tell me how to get in touch with the _Founders_."

He snapped his head back from the floor to his Ferengi rival. What on earth was he talking about? In response, Quark drew his hand from behind his back and held up an ornate gold-and-blue container. Suddenly interested, Odo took it into both his hands, his breathing becoming erratic. "It's a Changeling," Quark told him, "or _was_. Since it's dead, I'll let you have it for five strips of latinum."

No, it wasn't dead. Odo could feel it moving about, but it wasn't as strong as he imagined. "It's not dead; it's sick." Quark then called it eight strips and thanked him for doing business, but Odo was too preoccupied with this new discovery of another member of his own kind. As soon as the Ferengi was gone, Julian Bashir was back.

"If that's a Changeling, we should put it in a security field."

Odo shook his head. "That won't be necessary. And it won't go anywhere either, Doctor. It doesn't know how." Holding it a little closer to him, he whispered half to himself and to Julian.

"It's just a baby."

~o~

"A baby Changeling." Her father was studying it with enormous fascination. If there was another thing she would thank Quark for, it was presenting Odo with a new member of his people to them, even if it was a devious thief/dealer. Mia had never seen an infant shape-shifter before, and she wanted nothing more than to see it out of there.

"Centuries ago," Odo said, "my people sent a hundred of us out into the galaxy so we could learn about other races. When I was found, I looked very much like this." The little thing was currently in a tube filled with a gunky blue substance, probably to keep it stable for now. Mia giggled as she looked at it and then at Odo, asking him if he was THIS small? He chuckled and nodded briefly. "Like a humanoid child, it will grow; its mass will increase, its shape-shifting abilities develop."

Dr. Bashir came up. "As far as I can tell, it was exposed to a massive amount of tetryon radiation," he reported. Mia froze; if it was in space that long, then the amount of subatomic particles it came in contact with could very much render it overloaded with high energy. Too much made the inflicted very ill, like being out in the sun all day on Earth. "I'll have to purge the isotopes with an electrohporetic diffuser, remove the poisoning." He then picked up the tube and carried it away from Mia, Benjamin and Odo.

Her father looked directly at Odo. "Are you sure it poses no danger to us, Constable?" he asked softly.

Odo shook his head. "Well, when I was first discovered, I didn't know who I was, I had no memory of where I was from, and I didn't know I had the ability to mimic other forms."

Mia shivered at the idea of such innocent beings sent out alone and unsure of what to do on their own. It was like children abandoned by their own families. "Why would they send such helpless creatures out into space?" Benjamin asked as though reading her mind.

"To find out if the species they encountered posed any threat," Odo responded calmly. "What better way to gauge the race than to see how the way it treats the weak and vulnerable?"

Benjamin nodded. "I see your point. How long will it be until it is able to take humanoid form?"

"Several months. Why?"

"I think...still a lot we don't know about your people," Mia answered, knowing she would love to learn more herself besides what she knew the Founders themselves as.

"She's right," her father agreed. "But Changelings could provide Starfleet valuable information about the Dominion."

She expected Odo to be offended, but instead he offered to be the one to teach the little one how to shape-shift, and her father saw him as the qualified. And then he suggested Odo contact Dr. Mora Pol, who had raised Odo in his lab and did it well. But Odo insisted he do it alone. Mia had the slightest hint he would grow TOO attached to the infant if he was alone; she just knew it, because over the last few months, Nerys had gotten attached to the O'Briens' second baby in her belly. She'd expressed it clear to Mia herself.

Thinking of Nerys made her realize that the time was getting closer indeed. Today might be the day, and she'd promised the major she would be by her side when the baby was born.

~o~

Kira was at the end of her pregnancy finally, and she was relieved - but she was also overwhelmed with grief and memories. Losing old friends to a monster weeks before, finally taking matters into her own hands when Odo acquired the list of suspects when the overall idea was someone who had a grudge against the resistence cell as well as Nerys who was among. All her former comrades of the Shakaar resistence being killed off by Silaran Prin and almost done so herself- and the baby would have gone with her - and now. Deliver the baby and then kill her was his plan, since the small amount of morality in him - but the rest died when he was disfigured during the Occupation - insisted he'd never hurt an innocent life. He saw Nerys as a murderer because of her prominent role in the Occupation, so a part of her felt like she deserved it...but rational thought overtook and reminded her that his mind was lost long ago, so it wasn't her fault wholly.

But he'd been an innocent man in the whole event, being a servant under Gul Pirak. He had no real role in this, but he was still a Cardassian; his people did not belong on Bajor. They took everything from the Bajorans, and its people were fighting back for their freedom; the Cardassian civilians themselves were just as guilty as their conquerors. Nerys and her resistence cell were fighting a battle for taking back what belonged to them and their people.

Prin would have taken the baby and killed her, sedated her, but because of the makara herbs prescribed by Dr. Bashir and her two dear friends, Furel and Lupaza, before they were killed, the sedatives were counteracted and allowed her to kill Prin to protect herself and the baby. Odo, Captain Sisko and Julian arrived then to take her back to the station, where Mia was once again there to welcome her back, along with Miles.

Now she was in the birthing room, with a Bajoran midwife - also known as an _y'pora_ \- with Keiko and Miles, as well as Mia, trying to keep her relaxed and comfortable with various soothing instruments, while Dr. Bashir did his best to check on her, but it was nearly impossible with Miles' complaints that it was supposed to be an hour instead of two or three. His wife rolled her eyes at him, and even Bashir expressed his irritation.

"For a Bajoran, birthing is all about being relaxed."

"He's right, Chief," Mia said with a smirk. "That's why we gotta keep the rhythm."

"And she won't relax until Shakaar gets here." Nerys sighed and leaned back; she had to agree with him. He was a few hours late, supposed to be here by now, and she needed him the most.

And here she was, listening back and forth.

"He's the minister of Bajor," Keiko reminded her husband, "so he's a very busy man."

"And so am _I_ ," Julian added. "I got three surgeries scheduled this afternoon, so I'll try to pop by later." He was gone; the doctor was gone, and Shakaar was late. She could feel the baby moving, trying to relax at the midwife's gentle intone -

\- and then the door opened. Shakaar had finally arrived. Now Nerys could relax since the love of her life was here now.

~o~

Kira didn't have the baby until a few days later. She'd been in labor too long the first day, according to the midwife, due to her inability to relax as well as Shakaar's tardiness - not to mention the "ridiculous competition" between him and Miles, as Kira put it. But by the end of the third day, it finally happened. Kirayoshi O'Brien was born, and Mia was overlit with joy she couldn't wait to tell people; Nerys and the O'Briens would also, but the former was very distant afterwards.

The whole birthing process had been easy and so fascinating for Mia to witness. Kira didn't scream or writhe in any form of pain as she was expecting, but maybe she assumed it was because she was Bajoran. Maybe all aliens had a different process of giving birth than humans did. Mia had been so overwhelmed when she saw the baby born, covered with a little blood with his eyes squeezed shut, but otherwise screaming healthily. She'd seen it on Nerys' face as well as the O'Briens at the sight of their beautiful infant son the midwife held up for them all to see. Shakaar Edon had been beaming proudly that his girlfriend did great - though Mia thought while he was very good-looking and a nice guy, some part of her felt that he wasn't exactly the one for her dear friend. But she would never tell Nerys.

After the birth and Miles and Keiko brought their son home, the major was looking sorrowful. Mia knew why; Nerys had grown fond and attached to the little one she could call the closest thing to a son. Mia even got to hold the baby before he went home to his real family, and an indescribable feeling washed over her. She'd never held an infant in her life, but was this was Keiko was talking about? This wasn't hers, but she felt like she wanted to cry when she realized she DID want a child of her own one day.

Shakaar Edon was leaving for Bajor, and Mia watched with Quark from afar as they exchanged their good-byes. The bar was closed, but he'd found her and told her about how he found Odo behind the bar making them both a drink to celebrate over the sick Changeling he'd bought. "I admit, I've never seen him that happy before," he'd told her. "He went on and on about how he hated his people for taking his powers from him, rejected him because he was on the side of right, and so forth - but that little guy really did a good number on him." Which expressed another sorrow: despite the best attempts of his old mentor, Dr. Mora, as well as Dr. Bashir, the little Changeling was dying, leaving Odo grief-struck. And then the most remarkable thing happened: the Changeling linked itself into Odo's body, not only becoming a part of him but also giving his powers of shape-shifting back. She'd found him on the Promenade in almost the same overwhelming joy Nerys had been, but while one baby was born alive and well, another was lost - and the former could not be with the one who carried him to full term. Happiness was short-lived today.

She'd found him walking with Dr. Mora to the shuttle transport, exchanging words of good-bye. She heard Odo thank him for everything, regretting hating him for how he'd been handled when he was exactly what the young Changeling was, and telling him he was sorry for not having him in his life when he matured. Mora assured him they would finally be able to see each other more now that they made their amends. The embrace shared moved Mia's heart, making her feel strongly for Odo more than she did then. She waited until the doctor was gone - she wished she'd met him and spoken to him, got to know him more, but these two patched it up, so her chance might come - and marched up to Odo. "I'm sorry for your loss," she told him softly. She still hated the Founders for taking his powers away months before, hated the pain Odo suffered now when he began to get the feeling of being a father and loving a member of his race who wasn't working for a terrible cause - but for what he lost, he gained.

Odo nodded and accepted her hand into his. "Thank you, Mia."

"I was holding a baby today," she told him, "and I feel like, even though I'm far from it, I want a child of my own someday. But..." She trailed off. "Oh, I feel terrible bringing it up at a time like this after what you and Nerys went through." She looked into his eyes, seeing immense sadness that easily melted the most hardened Klingon, or Cardassian maybe. But he nodded again, her cue to continue. "What I was trying to say is that nobody deserves losing a child, ever. And if I ever have one of my own, I want you a part of its life. As its godfather, uncle or something." She knew she wanted it, and she knew he deserved happiness for the life he lost.

His speechless face was priceless, but before he could answer, both saw Nerys coming up to them; now Mia had one down, one to go. "I thought the O'Briens were having a party," Odo told her. Miles and Keiko had decided to throw a celebration for their newborn son, but it had seemed wrong for Kira to attend.

"I didn't feel like stopping by there," she answered, voice choking gently. "I got into this because the O'Briens needed my help." Now it seemed like she was getting angry - angry because of these feelings which were so new to her now leaving an unwanted impact on her heart and soul, maybe her body. "I never wanted a baby, but now I wish I could have just hold him in my arms and never let him go."

Just like Mia had, even though she didn't carry the child herself. And Odo was agreeing with the distress Kira was going through. "We both know how you're feeling, Nerys," he said, as though reading her mind. She looked down at Mia then, questioningly.

"Holding Kirayoshi made me realize I want a child one day," she answered, "and he's going to be the godfather - are you?" She looked up, not getting a real answer from him. The twinkle in his eyes was enough for a yes. "So...I want you to be the godmother. When the time comes. I want you both in our lives at all times." It wasn't the same as having one of her own, but it was the least Mia could do for them.

Nerys looked like she was going to cry again. Then she nodded and wrapped her arms around Mia, and to the surprise of both of them, Odo wrapped his around them both. Normally these things made him uncomfortable, but that little one had changed something in him. Mia wanted to cry so much but couldn't for both their sakes. So much had happened to all three of them that she fought to remain strong as they were going to do.

 **My heart lifted and cried when I saw "The Begotten" episode, where Kira gives birth and Odo bonds with the baby Changeling before contaminated with grief when it was dying. I took this as a perfect start to him and Nerys taking a step or so into what they will eventually have, and Mia, being the kindred soul she is, will do exactly what she promised, to make them both happy as well as herself. :') There's ALWAYS angst before happiness.**


	7. Blood Ties

**Now comes the events of "Ties of Blood and Water". :D Another one of my favorite episodes.**

Chapter Six

Blood Ties

The shuttle would be here any minute now, and Nerys was getting restless. She hadn't seen Tekeny Ghemor in awhile, and she couldn't have been happier. They had gotten to be very good, very close friends over the last couple years, but she hadn't really seen much of him since he saved her life from Entek. Worf and Dax were with her, the Klingon pacing back and forth with impatience.

"Now remember," she told them both, unable to contain her excitement, "I want him treated like a visiting Head of State. Full communications and computer activity, any assistance he may need from the station's crew." She led them both down through the airlock, wishing he was here so her excitement was quenched. The Cardassian was like a father to her since his daughter, Iliana, went missing years ago and Kira had been kidnapped, her appearance changed to the hated species to be passed off as Iliana. Since Entek was offed, Nerys was all Ghemor had left when his daughter was yet to be found. He'd been living in sanctuary under the Mathenite government.

"You should have told us he was coming," Jadzia scolded even though she was smiling. "We have a red carpet in a secret storage somewhere waiting."

Nerys paused and turned to face her. "Jadzia, this is important. Tekeny Ghemor led the Cardassian dissident movement against the Central Command, and now that... _Dukat_ -" She spat the name of the snake who once had command of DS9. "- and the Dominion have taken over, there is no one qualified better to lead the opposition. And he's...practically my father." She turned away then, remembering during the surgical alteration when he tried to love her and she spurned him, hurting him deeply, but all the while, he didn't give up.

"Your father?" Worf asked, baffled and disgusted. "But he's _Cardassian."_

Jadzia cleared the story for her, since it was long, indeed. "The Cardassians once kidnapped Kira and surgically altered her to look like Ghemor's missing daughter." All of it as a plan to expose him as the leader to the dissident movement against its central command. Cardassian politics were more complex than other societies'.

Which gave Nerys a very good reason to believe Ghemor might be Cardassia's only and maybe last hope. "He really needs our help," she told her friends before their faces indicated someone else was behind her, and a familiar voice was heard.

"That's a lot of faith to put in one man."

She heard herself gasp when he came up to her. "Legate Ghemor, it's so good to see you."

He laughed heartedly. "How many times must I tell you, Nerys?" He covered both hands with both of his own, a show of tender affection. "If you won't call me Father, call me Tekeny."

"Welcome to Deep Space 9, Tekeny," she said for him. Sometimes she forgot first name basis, but formality was always an act of respect. She embraced him, received a pat on the back from him, before turning around and introducing him to two of her friends and comrades. "This is our science officer, Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax, and our strategic operations officer, Lt. Commander Worf."

"Ah! Quite a reception for an old man," Tekeny joked, then looked down. "Oh, I see you're wearing the bracelet I gave you." She brought her wrist up and held onto it with a little smile. Jewelry wasn't required in the dress code, but this one was worn under at all times since it was very special to her as much as she tried to return it before. It had been his late wife's, Iliana's mother, and when Tekeny gave it to her, he told her she was the closest to family he had left. "Well, then I'm afraid the journey was a bit draining for me," Tekeny said.

"Oh, I'll show you to your quarters," Kira offered, helping him with his bags. They had more than enough catching up to do, and she couldn't wait for him to meet Kirayoshi.

~o~

"Morning, Daddy!"

"Mia, what a surprise!" Benjamin beamed at her when she waltzed into the captain's private room near the bridge in a soft blue and black dress uniform, one of her off-duty garbs. He accepted her in a hug and kissed the top of her head. "What brings you here?"

"Nothing important, other than I missed everybody lately. I already shouted my hello to everyone," Mia answered sweetly, kissing his cheek. She pulled back. "How about you?"

He shrugged. "Nothing much, other than me beginning my captain's log before -"

 _"Captain!"_ the voice of Miles O'Brien interrupted him through the comm system. Sisko sighed and turned his attention to it, answering him to go ahead, as usual. _"We've got an incoming message from Cardassia. From Gul Dukat. He's demanding to speak with you."_

The Gul of Cardassia, yet again. Mia kept her cool when her father begrudgingly asked Miles to patch him through before turning to the viewscreen behind them. The scaly face of the man himself with two escorts behind him appeared. _"Ah, Captain Sisko. Always a pleasure."_ His eyes shifted to the right. _"And the lovely young Miss Sisko. How long has it been? You haven't changed much since I last saw you in, what...a year?"_

If he was trying to flatter her, he was failing. Mia took compliments but not from men like Dukat. Her father saved her life. "Save the flatteries for another time," he warned. "And still calling yourself Gul? I'm surprised you haven't promoted yourself back to Legate by now." Things between the Cardassians and the Federation were harsher than ever now that Dukat decided to align his planet with the Dominion.

Dukat smiled. _"I prefer the title 'Gul'; so much more hands on than 'Legate', hm? And less pretentious than the other alternatives: President, Emperor, First Minister...Emissary."_ He finished the last title as an insult to her father's position given to him by the Prophets. Mia decided to play it back on him.

"How about...Dominion puppet?"

He threw his head back and laughed. Dukat thought she had a great sense of humor; not always did she use it to simply make someone laugh and enjoy. She meant to insult as he had, and even if he was, he wouldn't show. _"Miss Sisko, such comments reveal deep misunderstanding of the intricacies of the Dominion political system. Under our new administration, Cardassia enjoys -"_

Sisko interrupted him, wanting to get to the point. "You can justify yourself later, Dukat. I'm a busy man." That meant she had a late shift to start in a few hours, so Mia planned to be out of here as soon as possible. And Dukat was now looking at them with a tired expression.

 _"Very well. To cut to the chase, we have reason to believe you have one of our citizens aboard your station - a certain Tekeny Ghemor. Formerly a Legate in the Cardassian Central Command."_

Nerys had told her about him; he'd saved her life when she'd been abducted and transformed to look like his long-missing daughter who was a member of the resistance, and the two since remained like family if not the same race and blood. "And IF we do?" she asked, careful not to spring anything to get Ghemor or Kira - or anyone aboard DS9 - into trouble.

Dukat smiled most sinister. _"Well...we want him back. To put it mildly, he has a lot to answer for."_

Ghemor had gone against what his own goverment did to the people, led a rebel force behind their backs and as a result was going to pay the price with his life if he was to return home. Mia looked up at her father desperately, seeing his face schooled firm and expressionless. "I will take it under advisement," he told Dukat. "But considering the Federation doesn't recognize your government - and that Cardassia has never agreed to an extradition treaty with Bajor _or_ the Federation - you shouldn't get your hopes up," he finished with a cocky, teeth-baring grin at the Gul's disbelieved expression - priceless! - and ended the communications at once. Mia almost burst out laughing before she saw Benjamin's grim expression reverted back. Ghemor was indeed aboard, and Dukat would find out eventually. Once he did, he would be on his way for sure even if no one invited him.

~o~

Watching Tekeny hold baby Kirayoshi in his arms was wonderful to see. It was like a lost time to him; had Iliana been around longer, since her father was beginning to now believe she was dead and never to be found again, she would have settled down and had children by now. He would have been a grandfather, dying in peace instead of the way he was now.

He had Yarim Fel Syndrome. The most devastating news Kira Nerys had ever received in her life. He shouldn't die, not now. He was needed, but he was that far into his illness, affecting much of his digestive system. Julian said there wasn't much more to do other than spend the last of his days with him. And right now, watching him with the baby, was the greatest joy at the moment. Might as well make the last days last good while they could. "You're the most beautiful baby I've ever seen," Tekeny cooed to Kirayoshi, gently swaying him back and forth. "Yes, you are." He looked up at Nerys. "You must be very proud."

She cracked a grin and shook her head. "He's Miles and Keiko's baby," she told him. "I just carried him to term for them."

He startled her by suddenly groaning in pain; maybe his abdomen again. "Perhaps you should..." He held out the baby for her to take. Having him in her arms again, she looked at Tekeny again, asked him if he was all right before he held up his hand. "It'll pass. It's silly," he said, changing the subject, "but I almost feel like a grandfather. After all, you're the closest thing I have to a daughter." She smiled down at him. And Yoshi was the closest to a son she had, and he would have made a terrific grandfather.

"You ever thought about having one of your own?" he asked. "With that Shakaar fellow of yours?"

She stiffened in the middle of readjusting Yoshi's blanket. How did he -? "You know about me and _Shakaar?_ " Nerys asked, shocked.

He chuckled nervously. "I've been keeping an eye on you. I didn't have anyone follow you or anything; I just had people tell me whether or not they heard anything about you. Like it or not, you're a public figure, Nerys. First officer of one of the most important military installations of the system, in the Quadrant. The feud with Kai Winn has become something of a legend. And did you know that you have your own section in the...Cardassian Central Archives?"

She was shocked to learn that part, to know that she had her history in the Cardassian section, but she was also proud of everything she'd done, as Tekeny expressed himself. Sitting down with an awkward smile, Kira said, "I've kept my ears open for news about you, too. I was worried about you, especially with opposing the Cardassian government. Dangerous business."

"I enjoyed it while it lasted. I enjoy hopeless causes. Runs in the family. Iliana had it, too."

Now was the time to bring up the matter Mia came to her a little bit ago and reported; before taking off, she'd welcomed Tekeny like a family, and he'd graciously called her an angel, stunned to know the captain's daughter was a free spirit. "Gul Dukat called. He wants you extradited to Cardassia," Nerys said solemnly.

Tekeny sighed and shook his head. "I'm not surprised. He knows as long as I'm alive, I'm still a threat to him." Oh, they wouldn't let Dukat get his hands on him. He stood up and turned his back to her for a moment before turning back around, surprising her. "Nerys, I know more about the Cardassian government than anyone alive. Anything which could work in the right hands. And there's a Cardassian tradition: a _Shri-tal_ , where the dying give their secrets to their family to use against their enemies. But I have no one left to carry my secrets. No one but you."

Nerys shifted back into her seat uncomfortably. "Me?"

He approached her with that same look he gave her when he first mistook her for Iliana. "Be my daughter one last time, Nerys, and know my secrets and use them as you see fit."

~o~

Captain Benjamin Sisko was very pleased with the progress made with the interview between Major Kira and Tekeny Ghemor. He offered his sympathies for the dying man, and concluded the information given as a good start. Starfleet would be very pleased. "Good work, Major."

"I know," she answered, "but he seems to know every politician or bureaucrat on Cardassia."

He didn't miss the weariness in both her posture and voice. She apparently had been looking out for Ghemor so much she hadn't slept for some time. Taking care of a dying person took the energy from you. Nevertheless, the major didn't complain. "I've been up for thirty hours straight," she admitted.

"You should get some rest," Benjamin offered. After working long enough, little rest drove a being insane.

 _"Bashir to Major Kira."_

"Go ahead," she answered.

 _"Please report to Ghemor's quarters immediately."_

She looked at Sisko in shock, also silently asking his permission. He nodded, and she was up and running. He sat there for a moment, gathering his thoughts. Ghemor was a good man with so many secrets; it made him wonder about any terrible ones, but before he could dwell any further, he was called to the bridge for the status report. They had unexpected - _uninvited_ \- company.

"A Jem'Hadar attack ship is approaching the station."

 _Dukat_. Benjamin fumed as he walked over to Dax, who informed him that the weapons were armed and the targeting system active. "Red alert," he shouted, "all crew members report to battle stations!"

Gul Dukat's face was now on the screen, and he wasn't happy one bit. Tilting his head to the side, he said with a critical eye, _"Captain Sisko."_

"Gul Dukat, what is the meaning of this?!"

 _"You said that you would take the extradition of Ghemor under advisement,"_ Dukat stated accusingly. " _I eagerly await your decision."_

~o~

His predecessor made the mistake of questioning the loyalty of the Jem'Hadar, but he wouldn't make that mistake here. His memory was fresh as though it were yesterday, and he had to say he was looking forward to meeting with Captain Sisko again. Especially when it regarded the renegade Tekeny Ghemor who betrayed the Cardassian law of order for his people.

"Captain Sisko," the Gul said formally and politely. "Thank you for the kind invitation." They had actually come here uninvited, but it was necessary because they needed to collect their prize, and the captain didn't so much as hand the former Legate over in the first place. He smiled at Benjamin Sisko, even though the latter was too suspicious and wondering how he was still alive to even stand before him once more. Dukat then introduced the Vorta representative. "This is one of my Dominion advisors, Weyoun."

"We've met." Sisko rose, still keeping his eyes on him. "I watched you die," he half-accused.

Weyoun smiled, unaffected. "That wasn't me. At least, not exactly." He laughed gently.

"The Vorta are experts at cloning," Dukat clarified at the look Sisko gave him.

"It tends to mitigate the risk in so much of our work," Weyoun added. "Make it less severe for us. My predecessor was the fourth incarnation of our noble progenitor; I'm the fifth."

Benjamin raised an eyebrow, looking uninterested and disbelieving. "Immortality...?"

"Of the sort. Interested?"

Sisko ignored him then - Weyoun hated to be ignored because of his position as an important being he was made to be, but he would not complain - and returned to the important business. "Dukat, you said you wanted to talk to me, so now is your chance."

The Cardassian looked at him reproachfully. "Then I'll make it simple, Captain." Word had gotten out from a doctor on Cardassia about Ghemor's current condition that Dukat saw as the perfect leverage to get him back home. "Tekeny Ghemor is not a well man, as we found out; he would be better off under the care of his own people. We want him to know he _can_ come home."

"To attend his own execution?" Sisko countered.

Dukat returned, not being affected by the blunt question. "No, not at all," he said patronizingly. "Ghemor's case has been reviewed by the new judicial system and has been cleared of any wrongdoings."

"Dominion courts are renowned for their honesty and leniency," Weyoun said, but the captain didn't believe a word he was saying. He was one of the most powerful men in existence, and men like him always knew better.

"So, as you can see," Dukat finished, "there's no reason why Ghemor can't return to Cardassia."

Sisko snorted. "I don't think he would agree with you." Oh, how right he was, but Ghemor WOULD cooperate whether he liked it or not. Weyoun's eyes flared along with his own lips.

"Perhaps we should find out."

As expected, Ghemor lashed out from his sickbed.

"Dukat, I have a week to live," he retorted, feebly rising and trying to look intimidating yet failing. He was an old man, after all, and not much longer in his miserable life. "Maybe less. Do you really expect me to trade my life for a few days under the Cardassian sun?!" Major Kira Nerys was standing by and watching with a mixture of passiveness and aggression, which Weyoun found amusing.

Yet what he didn't find amusing was the fugitive himself resisting from his sickbed, and Dukat wasn't mastering it either. "It's where you belong, Ghemor," he argued, losing his patience.

"And it's where I would be if you hadn't betrayed our people to the Dominion!"

Weyoun cocked his head from the side to straight up again. He knew Tekeny Ghemor would fight with all the breath he had left, wouldn't give in, and make this trip a waste of time after all. "He doesn't seem to like you very much," he said to Gul Dukat, attempting in the slightest to lighten the mood. "We're going to have to do something about your public image."

Blast Major Kira. "Gentlemen!" She wanted them to leave, but Dukat wasn't finished.

"You haven't heard my entire offer. I have something else I think might interest you. Your daughter, Iliana." At the mention of his long-lost daughter's name, Ghemor's attention was rapt. Slowly, he sat back up from his resting position. Ignoring Kira's insistence that he not listen to Dukat, he continued to listen to the lie the Gul continued to tell.

"Your daughter is _alive._ I know where to find her."

Seeing right through this, Ghemor shook his head. "I want to believe you, Dukat, but even if I did, let's just say...I don't like the company you're keeping. You and I might have come to an agreement one Cardassian to another, but now dealing with you means dealing with _them._ " He was referring to the Founders themselves. "And that makes the price too high."

Dukat seethed, Weyoun as much. This debate was pointless, if you asked him. "My ship will be docked here for a few days longer."

"In case you change your mind," Weyoun added, but he doubted it highly.


	8. The Game of Chance

**I realize we never had the chance to see Mia at work as a dabo girl, so here's your chance. :) And a little deeper exploration as to what she really possesses.**

Chapter Seven

The Game of Chance

She heard Gul Dukat was on the station, but she hadn't encountered him - yet. Quark was talking about it to a few of the other girls of the staff who then broke it to Mia herself, and she could still hear it amongst the customers in the bar. She was at her table when one of the guests, a Therbian - namely called Aaamazzarite - whose name she forgot accidentally, spoke to his Bajoran companion about it; the latter hissed angrilly that the Cardassian had the gall to come here. Mia heartily agreed before she decided to change the topic and asked him to "roll the ball", while leaning in. If anyone caught on right away, the expression referred to a sexual term which one partner did just that to the male's private parts. She giggled delightfully to herself, catching the gamer looking over her and then lost his concentration, losing the bet.

This was her job, to lean over and distract the male player into losing. The goal was to keep an eye on the ball and not the girl, though men were such beasts, particularly the Cardassians themselves.

And speaking of which...

"Ah, Miss Sisko, what a pleasure."

Gul Dukat was standing before her on the other side of the table as she readied herself for the next line of customers, but he was completely out of the blue. Was _he_ the next one? She was doomed, then, because you could never be too careful with Cardassians. "Gul Dukat," she said, "indeed. I heard you were remaining aboard in terms of Ghemor."

"He refused my offer to come home to Cardassia, yes, but I have no intentions of leaving anytime soon," he answered. "Not until Ghemor agrees to return and answer to what he's done." Her father knew very well that Tekeny Ghemor would rather die before he answered to rebelling for the sake of his own people; men like him were always gone after no matter how strong their beliefs of doing the right thing were. But Ghemor had spent his life at risk, endured more than any Cardassian ever had, so why would he give in to Dukat's demands?

"Perhaps he's too smart for you," Mia told him, readying the game table. His mouth tightened as his eyes did; he was insulted that she had the spunk to call his methods of luring into a false sense of security weak. She changed the topic. "Would you like to have a try at this game of chance?" she asked, batting her lashes at him and handing the ball over to him.

The Gul's face softened, and he laughed, holding a hand up. "Oh, I'm not one for these games where your luck can run out...especially over such a beautiful woman." His eyes traveled over her form; she was used to this by now, but with him, it made her ill. It was as though he was undressing her with his eyes.

"Or perhaps I should take the chance, Dukat." That voice - oh, God, it was him! Mia gritted her teeth to prevent a gape from showing as she found herself staring into mesmerizing violet eyes she hadn't seen in over a year since the mission to Vandros IV.

"Weyoun," she gasped, unable to restrain herself now. How could this be? Benjamin told her he'd died at the hands of his own Jem'Hadar for questioning their loyalty! "You're alive!" Remembering Gul Dukat was there, she cleared her throat and handed the ball to the Vorta diplomat, still dazed. "I'm sorry," she told Dukat. "It's just that I -"

"Understandable," he said kindly, but she wasn't sure if it was real or pretense. "I'd have assumed your father told you, but the Vorta are clones, in case of danger arisen."

Weyoun continued for him. Looking up at him, he was smiling down at her. "Death is a casualty we can't let win, but unless the specific clone is deemed unfit to serve the Dominion for whatever savage reason intolerable, their line is terminated," he answered. "And in case you're wondering, I'm the fifth in my line. Don't ask about any of my predecessors," he warned, eyes hardening and freezing her on the spot. "We clones would rather not dredge up traumatic past experiences." She nodded, and he turned to the game board, ready to enjoy the game with the disinterested Gul watching.

The whole time, she could feel his eyes on her as much as she tried to do her job in distracting Weyoun from winning - a sudden thought occurred to her that she really wanted his eyes on her more than the game itself.

~o~

Weyoun 5 had to admit he was happy being aboard the Federation station for some extra days. He and Gul Dukat had developed a great working relationship despite countless differences, he was in the Founder's favor more than ever, but most of all: he was happy to see Mia again.

His predecessor hadn't gone very far with her before his execution by Omet'iklan, but Weyoun remembered vividly how he thought her beautiful and expressing a deep longing as hard as he tried to shove it down. Now, seeing for himself, he immediately stirred inside. She was their enemy's daughter, not a vision unseen to anyone other than himself. But the first and only kiss that Weyoun 4 had with her made it impossible to wholly ignore. He rarely would see her, but now that he was here, he wanted to learn more about her than what he remembered his predecessor learned.

All of it would have to wait until business was settled.

Captain Sisko refusing to negotiate the terms of Tekeny Ghemor's surrender to the Dominion, making it loud and clear that he did not trust any one of them, was a waste of time here. Not only that, because Ghemor was removed from his position of Legate and Gul Dukat took over after Cardassia aligned with the Dominion, Ghemor was still a potential threat in all of their eyes and therefore must be made an example of, which was exactly why Weyoun and Gul Dukat were aboard Deep Space 9, in hopes of a simple exchange. His refusal made the Gul look more of a fool than he was.

Not only that, since the use of his missing and possibly dead daughter failed, Dukat had more plans in store. Weyoun saw this when his ally filled a bottle of kanar with more than enough poison to kill Ghemor when he didn't see it coming. Dukat never told him what kind of poison it was, but Weyoun recognized it as the lethal voraxna, used commonly against Cardassians. It was so strong and distinct that it wouldn't be detected so easily in anything as powerful as it was. Weyoun thought it a brilliant idea, so that Ghemor would die a quick and merciful death instead of more painfully long hours to come.

He ought to have expected that someone among the crew would find it and catch on; mostly Dukat should have figured someone - specifically the captain himself - would discover it and take it for examination.

Now he was in the mood for a little game of dabo. The game of chance, which was exactly everything he was willing to do. On Earth, it was a roulette form - where the ball was dropped into the spinning wheel and landed in a random place once the wheel stopped turning. There were girls employed by Quark present, their job to distract the male players so they would lose the round, but Weyoun wasn't so easily distracted by these flashy females who were the show toys of the sexist Ferengi - and especially not by Mia who had been at his table. His eye was on the ball as it bounced around and stopped in its place when the wheel ran its course, and per custom - "DABO!" he shouted happily, laughing wildly and accepted the winnings from Mia, who was still smiling at him. "That is dabo, isn't it?" he said to Dukat, still laughing and throwing his head back.

Dukat mildly rolled his eyes but managed a smile. "I don't know why you insist on playing this ridiculous game."

"I like games," Weyoun answered. Vorta were lovers of all forms of fun, not just all work, after all.

"I see you managed to watch the game and not the girl, as they say," Mia told him. "It's rare the men keep their eyes on the ball, but I'm impressed."

"I don't agree that a Cardassian would have fun playing with the ball than he is watching for his next prize." Mia looked up and beamed at her father coming up to their table, face stern and mirroring his voice as he spoke of the nature of the reptilian men.

"Ah, Captain, can I help you?" Dukat was ecstatic, Weyoun the same, but then he saw the familiar bottle of kanar in his hand. He bit his tongue and waited to see how this would play out.

"I thought we should talk. I realize I haven't been much of a host." He and his stunningly beautiful daughter led Weyoun and Dukat over to one of the nearest tables and poured some kanar into the glass brought. Weyoun wondered if she had other guests to attend to, but decided not to ask. "Here, have some kanar. And I insist." Sisko gave Dukat a hard look, who returned it reproachfully.

"Oh, no thank you. I'm not particularly thirsty right now. I never touch kanar on an empty stomach. It's bad for the digestion, Captain."

Sisko regarded first him and then the glass the Gul pushed back. "In that case, then, that's something of an understatement, because in that bottle is enough voraxna poison to kill at least a dozen Cardassians. It was delivered to Tekeny Ghemor less than twenty minutes ago."

"Fascinating." Dukat was trying to feign innocence and ignorance but did not do a particularly good job at it. Mia noticed it, too, with Weyoun, and both turned their eyes on him. Though Dukat hid it well from her father, he was looking at Mia's sultry beauty from the corner of his eyes. Weyoun knew Cardassians were notorious with taking various women into their beds, but he wouldn't let him try to coax the captain's daughter into his. He knew Mia wouldn't like him that way, much less WANT him that way.

"What's wrong, Dukat?" Sisko challenged. "Are you afraid Ghemor's going to say something that might undermine your new cozy position?"

Dukat's scaly features hardened as he leaned forward. "Tread with care, Captain," he warned. "You're coming dangerously close to accusing the head of the Cardassian government of attempted murder."

The captain knew he was right in his suspicions as to who was behind the attempted poisoning, and he wouldn't back down. "Is _that_ what I'm doing?" he growled, his and Dukat's confrontation via ugly facial expression while the daughter and the Dominion diplomat himself watched on in amusement.

"Oh, how delightful," Weyoun said, laughing. "The mysterious plots, the subtle innuendo, the failed threats. It's all so...entertaining." He could really use a drink himself just to quench his excitement at all of this. Picking up the glass of poisoned kanar, he downed it down in two, three gulps in front of the pricelessly shocked Gul Dukat and Captain Sisko, Mia herself slack-jawed. The taste itself was strong as he knew it would be. "Oh, my. That IS quite toxic, isn't it?"

"Are you _insane_?" Dukat seethed.

"Oh, Vorta are immune to most forms of poison, including this," Weyoun explained, the physiology of his people including a strong immune system, but there were very few they weren't invulnerable to and yet to find a cure to. "Comes in handy when you're a diplomat."

Sisko snorted and stood. "Especially when you're working with the Cardassians. You can keep the kanar, Dukat. Ghemor won't be drinking it." However, he paused and gave one last menacing glare. "And keep your reptilian eyes off my daughter from now on."

~o~

She wasn't sure if she could handle Dukat being aboard DS9 any longer, even though Ghemor was nearing the end of his days. By the time she left work, she ran into Kira Nerys, who was in a worse mood than she was. "Nerys, whatever is it?" she asked, hurrying to catch up with the major, who huffed as she headed for her quarters.

"Ghemor, that's what. He lied to me, and I'm certainly not speaking to him."

Mia was on the verge of stopping in her steps, but forced herself on. "What do you mean? What did Dukat say?" She knew the snake had a hand in this to turn Ghemor against the woman who was the closest thing to a daughter he had left, so what was it this time? She counted off a simple faux clearing of his "wrongdoings", off with luring him into a false sense of his real daughter alive, off with an attempted poisoning, and now what?

"He had a part in the Kiessa Monastery massacre years ago. He aided in killing priests who hid weapons from them. He _had_ to keep this from me."

It wasn't surprising, actually, because every man like Tekeny Ghemor served. He couldn't go back and change it no matter how much he wanted to, and in those days was war. He probably didn't want Nerys to hate him, so that was why he didn't tell her. "Too late for that, I'm afraid," Nerys spat. "Now I want nothing to do with him."

Oh, Mia understood how she was feeling, but that didn't mean Ghemor should die alone. "You should reconsider that," she said. "He might have made grievous mistakes, but he's dying and shouldn't do it alone. Do that and you'll regret it like with what happened when..." She let her sentence end there. Back when she was still in the resistence cell, her late father had served and died, but she had not been there with him during his final moments, instead choosing to go after the Cardassians responsible. Nerys never forgave herself for that, and Mia didn't want her to endure that ever again. "The sooner you realize that, bury him beside your father so the amends are made," Mia said before leaving her side. She knew she struck a chord, but it had to be done.

Nobody but herself knew about this room in the lower levels, where she would spend two to three times a week practicing her skills. She'd taken training even if she wasn't an official cadet or officer of the fleet, because how could anyone take a "weak little girl" among them? Mia hated people calling her that in younger days on Earth, but as she grew up, she let Benjamin teach her how to defend herself as often as he could spare. Now it was her teaching herself on her own, using what he gave her.

Changing into a black tank and pants, tying her hair into a ponytail and pinning it behind her head, Mia entered the "underground" weapon room reserved only for herself. She kept a closet of all equipped weaponry down here, from all races - one of her favorites was the _kar'takin._ One used in hand-to-hand combat by the Klingons and Jem'Hadar, which consisted of a sleek, straight-edged blade, stabbing straightaway and not even close to blunt. Yet with the right amount of pressure, its blade fractured easily. Mia picked this up first; she rehearsed numerous times she shouldn't have to do this again, but dedication meant never take it too lightly. Whirling her body around, her grip firm but not painful, she brought the weapon up and down, twirled in all directions with its weight balanced perfect in her hands. A soft _whoosh_ was heard as the blade whistled through the air, like a scythe or an Asian sword on Earth. She'd even had some practice sessions with Worf when he, too, was off-duty, even if their shifts differed.

Another was the phaser everyone else carried aboard the station to battle, which also resulted in a quick and painless death no matter the distance. No harm in this, given she knew how to shoot targets since an early age when her father showed her since she first hit puberty, when it came to being careful about strange men who offered to pick her up.

By the time she was done with the various blades from all cultures, she was tired and sweating, but that didn't stop her from singing part of one of her favorite songs which she would after sessions, which eased the tension of the single-person sparring: " _Somewhere beyond the sea, he's there watching for me. If I could fly like birds on high, then straight to his arms I'd go sailing..."_

A clap of hands from somewhere behind her made her whirl around. Drawing the _kar'takin_ back into her hands, she raised it to strike the uninvited visitor whose silhouette was outlined in the shadows. "Why, if I had the ability, I would have said what a lovely voice," Weyoun said sweetly, stepping out. He bowed his head forward once as his gesture of appraisal. "And such strength for so small a woman."

 **Yup, Dukat has an eye for the beautiful Mia Sisko. One of my favorites to use in a story. :)**

 **The song Mia sings is "Beyond the Sea" by Celtic Woman.**


	9. Sleeping with the Enemy

Chapter Eight

Sleeping with the Enemy

He had decided to follow Mia Sisko to wherever it was she went after she was done with her shift, and strangely enough, he was extremely surprised she would come here of all places. He didn't think anyone else knew she was here; this was an abandoned area, apparently. He came and hid in the shadows so she wouldn't know he was there - and that was when he saw her. She was all in black, accentuating every curve of her body his predecessor remembered well, she introduced herself to swirling various blades from all cultures in the air, challenging an imaginary opponent to a duel, and the whole time, with his hands clasped behind his back and posture stiff, Weyoun was impressed with her abilities. He wondered why she didn't seek to join the ranks of her father and the rest of the DS9 crew.

He couldn't see if her skin was beginning to sweat from where he was standing. It was a fascinating sight, seeing her spar against an unseen foe; her incredible strength and speed, her intelligence and fondness for action - why was she a simple game girl when she could be so much more? Weyoun guessed that she had potential but chose not to get too far ahead of herself.

It made him realize that he could persuade her to join him and the Dominion.

She stopped her parries and replaced the latest Klingon blade back with the rest, and then she surprised him with what he recognized as a song. His ears were sensitive, so he detected a melody he couldn't place, but it made his ears twitch with pleasure, as her voice did. He couldn't explain it in words, but she set him up in a blaze - no, he loved the _Founders!_ The Founders and no one else; what had his predecessor been thinking?!

"Did your master send you to spy on me?" Mia purred, a smile twisting her face as she lowered her weapon she'd raised at him - a Klingon _kar'takin,_ he recognized. An impressive blade of choice, not that he would ever wield one. Vorta were not physical beings. "Send you to keep tabs on me?"

Weyoun stared at her for a moment before finding his voice and laughing. "Ah, no, I simply let curiosity get the best of me."

She turned from him and put the _kar'takin_ back, locking the doors. "Curiosity killed the cat, as they say on Earth," she told him. "Gets you in deep every time."

Weyoun smirked. "And compared to what my predecessor endured, I'm not quite sure how much trouble _I_ could be in very soon. I was cloned last year, dear Mia. And life's been nothing but good to me - but this," he said, hissing with the "S" at the end. "Your father...I like him very much, but he disagrees with everything we stand for, refuses to come to a peaceful settlement just this once with Cardassia and the Dominion."

She fixed him with her eyes - one brown, the other blue. He wondered if this was genetic or if she was born with it; Weyoun 4 couldn't figure it out, either. "Well, you can't get everything your way, you know," she said smoothly. "That's what life is all about. And as for the Dominion, as much as I find you interesting, _Weyoun_..." Her drawl of his name bristled him. "...I follow my father and all my friends with loathing everything it stands for. Disturbs me that you would even so much as follow them."

He fumed; he might harbor some feelings of attraction for her, but the fact she was stubborn as her father and wouldn't hold his ideals. He might be foolish to think she would be swayed so easily. "I suppose you wouldn't be interested in switching sides and joining me, with the Dominion, where we might as well belong together." The words were out before he could think. Her eyes flashed with the intensity of a starship engine brought to life.

"What makes you think I would do that?" she asked softly, taking a few steps forward until she was standing in front of him. "Abandon my family and comrades for your conquering affairs of state? I'm not as delicate as you think I am. I might look like a flower, but I don't feel like one. Don't presume to think otherwise."

She was bold and daring; who knew how and where she got that from. Weyoun liked to think she was naturally so. "Oh, I wouldn't presume." Her hands were on her hips, and he did his own thing by folding his arms across his chest. He wondered what it would take to make her break. He sensed she was stronger than he might be thinking, so it would be difficult unless he applied the right amount of pressure. And that was all it would take. The fire in her eyes matched his, competing brown and blue against light amethyst. That fire sent his nerves tingling; his body was reacting in a way he never experienced before.

"If you ever want me in any way, it better be something other than persuading me to join the Dominion, make me into something I'm not," Mia snarled, her sweetness from the game of dabo gone and replaced by a vicious little minx. Hmm, she wanted a challenge with him. "Use your soothing words, your diplomatic mannerisms, your beautiful eyes -" She stopped there, her eyes suddenly widening. Weyoun felt his own widen as well as the unexpected comment. Silence filled the air between them, the tension getting greater with each passing second. "I-I better go," was all Mia could utter, leaving him there and running for the staircase.

~o~

What the hell had she been _thinking_? Or maybe she wasn't, and that made it even more terrifying. But it _was_ true; Weyoun's eyes were the most enthralling, violaceous shade she'd ever seen in her life. His last incarnation might have kissed her and fueled her fire with those eyes, but with things between the Federation and the Cardassian/Dominion alliance worse than ever, she wasn't sure if it was ever possible now to form more than a mere attachment with the beautiful Vorta diplomat. Perhaps she shouldn't deny that any longer; Weyoun was the most handsome creature she'd ever seen. But a price to pay was him serving a group of proud, shape-shifting dictators whom she still loathed for taking Odo's powers when he killed one of their own because it was necessary - and such an act had never been done in their history, so to resort to a drastic measure to keep it that way...Mia hated the Changelings period, and the fact Weyoun worshipped them?!

She couldn't believe he even thought she would consider abandoning her life and home for him - and wait, did that mean what she thought he did? Not only him asking her to join the Dominion, but did he actually like her more than a simple acquaintance? Now that she was thinking it was possible, she felt more scared than excited now.

She'd arrived at her own quarters; she'd been given her own since she became a legal adult and arrived aboard with Benjamin and Jake. Now she wanted nothing more than to bathe in vanilla and go to sleep, but before she could, the buzzer rang. Who could that be? "Come in!" she called, and the doors whooshed open. To her surprise, in strolled Weyoun. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

He clasped his hands in front of him, but he didn't smile. "I want to know why you said my eyes were beautiful," he said as he marched over until he was in front of her, holding her face to his. "I have never received such compliments in my lifetime, and neither have my predecessors. I honestly do not know how to take it."

Mia nodded. "You remember your predecessor telling me about Vorta mating rituals?" she asked. She'd seen other humans and non-humans together all the time, but with a Vorta? It was unheard of, alright.

Weyoun chuckled. "Vorta stick to their own kind even if we choose to find a match. Mating with non-Vorta is very rare," he cited, making them both laugh before getting serious again. "Amelia Sisko, I also came to apologize for my...proposition."

She snorted and waved that off. "I've had enough of Gul Dukat and the Founders today, so I would rather not talk about your little proposal, thank you very much." Simply talking about it just about ruined the rest of her evening that she'd been hoping to work the stress out. "And I prefer Mia. Amelia was my grandmother whom my father never got along with. If you don't mind, I would rather you distract me with something else."

He cocked his head to the side, a slightly unpleasant smile forming on his face. It seemed like this was a game he really enjoyed playing, more than dabo itself. That smile turned her on for a very good yet scary reason. "And what would you like me to distract you with if not with talking about changing sides for a greater good?"

Seething internally that ordering the deaths of innocent people and imposing martial law, and so forth, was said to be "greater good" by those enforcing it, Mia blurted out so no more time was wasted, "Kiss me right now, like your predecessor did. See if it makes you feel the way he did. I felt it, too, unmistakably." She remembered how passionate and eager he was, but also exploring new territory like a young man entering the real world on his own. He made her body feel like it was burning to one thousand degrees which no human or humanoid, or any other alien, would ever survive. She wanted to see if this new Weyoun would do the same for her; she wanted to know if, despite being a clone, he was still the same person. Cloning WAS a form of immortality, after all, never aging in appearance and living up to as long as he or she could be, unless someone or something else killed them.

He looked thoroughly shocked at the valorous question. His soft, full lips - if slimmer than hers - were parted but no words came out. She could hear his breathing in a soft volume. "Oh...alright," was all he could say, and she closed her eyes, just wanting to be surprised when she felt his lips on hers. Barely a few seconds passed before they were, silky and tingling...melting.

She pulled back a few seconds later. "What are you feeling now?" she asked, her cheeks warm and possibly pink. Weyoun's eyes darkened to a deeper purple, telling her yes. And they were enough to tell her the answer she'd wanted. "I don't suppose this is a bad time, then, to ask if you remember me asking you -"

"- if I wanted to be free," he answered. "Of course I do, and the answer is not important. I live to serve the Founders in all things."

Mia lost it, but she was careful not to raise her voice for anyone else to hear. "Weyoun, listen to me, I'm not asking to you defect from them, but there's more than just serving them. Giving up your life and happiness - clone or not - means living as a machine where everything means nothing to you." He turned away from her, not wanting to hear anything from her now, but she wouldn't let him go so easily. "Don't you walk away when I'm talking to you."

"I'm a representative for the Dominion," he said coldly, looking down at her. "And I have no choice. If the Founder detects any form of defect in me, then I am fit for termination and my next incarnation more dutiful. Though I am more than prepared for that, I do not wish to displease the gods."

She could see there was no point in arguing with him; he was too loyal as she was too loyal to her own side. But their differences would not erase this forbidden heat burning between them, because the Earth Bible said that the forbidden fruit always tasted that much sweeter - yet with dire consequences. Mia was always terrified of consequences, but she was also always willing to risk for happiness. "Well, then, there is another way to resolve." It wasn't that way to her, but it might certainly work on him.

Weyoun raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Do tell."

"Mate with me."

~o~

Weyoun was at a loss for words; for her to ask him to do the one thing common in all species - two becoming one - he was left in a mild state of shock. He shouldn't...he shouldn't...but then he felt it. Down below, in the deeper regions of his pants, movement aroused in him in a manner that had never occurred before. Was this called need? He realized how exquisite it felt, but the longer it continued, the less he could stand it. Mia was looking down with him, her eyes knowing.

"You want this," she said softly. "I'm ready for you, and I don't want to wait any longer." She took both his hands into hers.

 _Dear my love, haven't you wanted_

 _to be with me?_

 _And, dear my love, haven't you longed_

 _to be free?_

"When Daddy told me what happened to your...predecessor," she said slowly, making him flinch; clones were conscious about the deaths of the ones before them, "I was devastated. Because you made me feel something I never did before, silly as it is, but I know what I want. It scares me, but I'm willing to take big steps for what I know I want." She looked deep into his eyes, opening herself up to him. Weyoun nodded slowly in understanding. She had never been touched by another man; she was a young woman, beautiful in appearance and under the surface, but no one ever claimed her. Weyoun had little experience about these things, so he had to admit this was far out of his comfort zone...but he also wanted to make this night unforgettable. He won't see her again after he and Dukat left the station, so he wanted tonight and however longer last.

 _I can't keep pretending that I don't_

 _even know you_

 _And at sweet night, you are my own_

 _Take my hand_

She'd been expecting him to use words as his answer, but Weyoun wanted to do one thing and one thing only which sealed it all instead of using vocals. He leaned forward and placed a soft, chaste kiss on her lips, just a simple peck which made her stiffen and unable to speak. He let his smile split into a triumphant, teeth-bearing grin. He'd done it, even more when he returned his mouth to hers and this kiss became hotter and involved a little more tongue and stirring something even hotter in his loins that he never felt before either; it was both dangerous and thrilling at the same time. There was a fine difference between love and lust, but he took them both into the same sentence. She possessed telepathy as he did, so he sent the message through the air and through her for the first time, now that it was just the two of them.

 _I've loved you since the day we first met. It wasn't explored wholly, but it was always there._

 _And I've loved you since long before we met,_ she returned, melting him on the spot, but then reality hit him when he gently broke apart, the tight heat below his waist getting to him more negatively than positively now.

"Mia, wait. Are you sure we're not rushing anything? I can wait; we have all the time in the universe..." There might be another chance, now that he'd said that, but it would be so much longer and he wasn't sure if he could ever bear that.

She nodded. "I'm ready."

~o~

Losing your virginity is always painful, but keeping it going always lessened it. Mia was biting her lip nervously as she reached to slip off her tank top and exposed herself more to his eyes with shedding her pants and underwear. Her father and Jake wouldn't be coming by tonight; she had the night all with Weyoun, the "guest" aboard this ship. Gul Dukat wouldn't need him either, that she knew of right now. But you never knew when you would be interrupted, but she didn't want to rush either. Weyoun didn't want to, either. His eyes deepened to an ultraviolet when he drank in her exquisitely full breasts and firm stomach, flared hips and toned legs. "By the Founders, Mia...!" he exclaimed in amazement. He couldn't appreciate the art and beauty of anything other than his newfound lover. It saddened her to know he couldn't enjoy anything else, but she would make him enjoy her.

She watched him lean forward and began to remove his boots, giggling at the sight of his adorable feet revealed to her. He looked up then and quirked an amused brow at her. He stood and worked to remove his tunic next. While she watched, standing naked before him while he was working to get himself in the same state, she giggled again at the sight of his arousal jutting out through his trousers. "Excited?" she asked even though she didn't have to. His hypnotic violet eyes flashed mischievously in response, matching his smile. _Need you ask?_ his message was. Weyoun lifted his shirt over his head and showed a softly muscled chest, smaller in build and devoid of any marks or scars. Then his trousers were gone so he was completely naked. Mia let her eyes wander from that chest and down the rest of his body, stopping directly on his erect member, nestled richly against black. She didn't know why, but always the sight of that turned her on more than anything else, naturally because that was the main part which joined man and woman together as one.

Weyoun smirked as he detected what she was thinking. "You really like it, don't you, my dear?" He crossed her in two strides, but she never removed her eyes once from his hard length. Mia shivered when his arms wrapped around her as he leaned down again and kissed her again. Mmm, his lips so soft and silky, like nothing she remembered touching or tasting in her life. She was more than ready for him, because she felt herself getting hotter to the inferno level, molten like a volcanic core ready to explode. She felt Weyoun's hands on her now, caressing her shoulders and then moving down to her breasts, her nipples sensitive and hard like his cock now pressing between her legs, pushing past her pubic nest and finding the sensitive nub in the middle, sending a jolt of pleasure through her. She in turn reached down to trail over his chest, stopping briefly at his left nipple, gently flickering at it before continuing, feeling his soft six-pack and then finally feeling the rough sensation of Weyoun's pubic hair and manhood pulsating under her fingers. The head was wet with pre-cum, trembling under her nails and wanting to be somewhere else other than in the open air.

He bucked gently into her hand. "That's so good, my love. Do it again." She repeated the ritual of massaging the length with her fingers, and his body jolted with the pleasure his body was feeling. Now she found herself looking back up at his face; his eyes were closed tight, mouth opened and releasing soft but rapid breaths of ecstasy. He was happy, and she loved making him happy. Mia brought her other hand up to gently stroke his right ear; Vorta ears were sensitive, she read, and it made him moan deliciously that her nerves were rattling. She knelt down then between his legs and did the sure thing she knew would want him to hurry and get them both into bed, which was through the next doorway where her bath waited for her in the same area. She realized that she'd forgotten about it before deciding it could wait until morning instead. Weyoun wouldn't care, would he?

She concentrated on flicking her tongue out over the head of his cock, getting another jerk of his hips. Weyoun's words were nonsyllabic, unable to form proper phrases, other than moans of her name and whimpering nonstop, until he stopped her by pulling his hips from her mouth; he didn't taste bad, but let's call it bittersweet. "Let's move to the bed," he offered breathlessly, picking her up and carrying her like a new bride to the bed, sprawled with silk and cotton together. He was on top of her, confident in himself now but still nervous. "I'll try to be gentle," he promised. Mia nodded and held her breath, her heart thundering loudly in her ears, as she felt him bring his shaft to her wet opening. He slid in easily, but there was the thin obstacle called her maidenhead back on Earth in old times, and the pain shot through her like the tearing of a precious exotic blanket. She cried out and jerked slightly. Weyoun paused and looked at her with some panic in his eyes, softening when he moved in and out once, twice, and continued that routine when she begged him to. She never begged anyone anything, but the whole bliss of sex - especially to a virgin's first time - usually tended to change the person in the midst of the act. Weyoun kissed her again and cooed, "Let me take care of the poor little space princess, ease her pain."

She chuckled and arched her neck so he possessed it, nibbling and kissing as foreplay and comfort. Mia gave herself, opened up to him wholly, spreading her legs wider and wrapping around his waist. This was one of the positions she remembered being the most common in the Indian _Kama Sutra_ but forgot which one it was named. For sure, it was one used as deflowering; twenty-four years old, and her first time hurt, but she wasn't surprised, and it was truly amazing she was finally with the man-alien of her dreams, one who was a ruthless servant of evil but actually possessed a softer side and a heart only she knew. They were on opposite sides; he a Dominion diplomat and she the Federation captain's daughter - but their love was stronger than the shackles their worlds tried to bind them with.

He shifted his hips so his manhood was aligned properly inside her and massaging her properly; she shifted her legs around him like crawling vines to urge him on, grasping his arms and digging her nails into the pure flesh. Weyoun hissed delightfully, which soon turned into a primal growl as he looked down at her to see her beginning to pour sweat as he was now doing so. Their bodies shone brighter than any diamond in existence, getting stronger when he pumped his hips faster and faster, slowing down only to save the energy and picking up again, their desire-filled cries echoing the walls which were actually sound-proof, climaxing when their bodies released the fruitful energy into each other.

Weyoun was so beautiful with his eyes closed in post-coital bliss, his moans high and lowering into a softer level when the last of his cream emptied into Mia. He slowly pulled from her body and laid on top of her, burying his face into the crook of her neck and shoulder. Mia sighed in content as her newly ravished body savored the feel of Weyoun's bewitching body on top of hers after their spellbinding lovemaking. She lazily scratched and massaged his back and shoulders, him murmuring wordlessly against her shoulder appreciatively. "You like that?" she asked with a croon. He chuckled and nodded in response, not lifting his head to look at her. "That was amazing," she told him. " _You_ were amazing."

Weyoun raised his head then and smirked. "As were you."

"I love you," she whispered, tracing his lips with her fingers, which he kissed every one of them.

"Loving the enemy is treason."

"And I don't care," she swore. "I can deal with anything in life."

He chuckled and shook his head, resting the side of his face against the soft hills of her breasts. "You have an incredible heartbeat," he noted. "I never thought I'd appreciate biology and real emotion. But then again, art and biology are two separate things."

"They are," Mia agreed, holding him close. She ran her fingers through his rich mane of black curls. "You're so beautiful, you know that? So cunning, so strong in speech, so graceful..." He burst into a fit of almost girlish giggles that she joined in and assumed control, switching their positions so she was on top of him and looking down on him. "Do you agree?"

"If I said I agreed with how I view myself, I'd label myself a narcissist," he answered. "And I'm not."

"No, you're not." Mia kissed him. "Wish we could do this every night?"

He sighed sadly and shook his head. "I'd love nothing more, but then Dukat would notice, and perhaps anyone else aboard the ship. We'll have to be cautious, my love. I hate keeping our love a secret, but it has to be that way for now."

Mia nodded. Being a longtime lover of romance in all shapes and sizes and forms, forbidden love was that much sweeter, but now she knew how the heroines themselves felt in these situations. Notably Romeo and Juliet, whose taboo ended in tragedy and their feuding families binded together that way. That was NOT what she wanted of herself, her new Vorta lover, and their opposing sides.

 **The "Kama Sutra" is a six-hundred or so year old Indian-Hindu guide on human sexual behavior, with Indian artwork illustrations of a little over a hundred different sex positions and written descriptions on how to do them. ;) The actual book is hard to find, but there are others out there with those positions, some modernized up to date.**

 **The song parts are from "Anywhere" by Evanescence, if anyone missed my message from earlier. :)**

 **Forbidden is always the best, but it is also very fatal.**


	10. Bound

**A little certain something in thanks to my Irish heritage, meaning "eternity". Enjoy! :)**

Chapter Nine

Bound

He loved sleeping when not on duty; it was peaceful and one of the only times he had alone. His body succumbed to a zen taken for granted by many, his mind going elsewhere instead of to the present, which was otherwise known as dreaming. Not all Vorta dreamed, though; in his, however, he would often forget what he was dreaming about by the time he awoke. Lately was about Mia. Opening his eyes, Weyoun saw her asleep beside him, her body curled up into his so warmth radiated through their bodies.

She looked so soft and innocent in her uninterrupted peace. Weyoun smiled and drew her closer to him. Her heartbeat matched his own; the rhythm reverberated throughout his system. He wanted nothing more than to call her his at last, but there was still so much to discuss with her. He did not regret their ardent lovemaking, but he worried about how it would end for them badly. Something burned between them even brighter and hotter than what they shared last night, than any sun on any system. He'd felt it last night, but this morning it was stronger than ever, proving it was still there...

And then it hit him like a phaser blast.

They were _bound._

It was the soul mate bond, in which commonly in Vorta, the link between the two people was far more powerful than any other in the universe; it connected them for eternity, transferred and shared powers so they could communicate, sense the other's pain, and never traded secrets amongst any other but themselves. That meant she would show him her hand-to-hand combat and self-defense, and how to use _every_ type of weapon. And he in return transferred his telepathic abilities to her.

Mia stirred when he slowly shifted from under her; the time was nearly six hundred hours. "Sleep well, Ambassador?" she teased, voice groggy with sleep. Her eyelids fluttered, blinking it away. He smiled over her and nodded, leaning over to kiss her forehead before moving to get out of bed, get dressed and join Dukat. But the sooner he sat up and his back turned to her, she gasped. "Weyoun!"

He jerked his head back around and frowned at her. "What's the matter, dearest?"

"Your back...left shoulder..."

Weyoun twisted his head as far as it could go, seeing something dark and printed into his wax-colored flesh, but he couldn't make out what it was exactly. "Excuse me," he said to Mia, rising and letting his privacy show for her and marched over to the wall mirror. He turned the left side of his back into the reflection, letting his jaw drop so a gasp would escape. "Founders have mercy, Mia - what is this?" It looked like a skin art of some sort, looking like a tree of some sort, with strange interwoven scrolls that he didn't see a beginning OR an end.

"It's what I have," she said in amazement, turning around so he could see her back. Behind her right shoulder was exactly the same image in her soft skin. "Back on Earth, when I turned sixteen, I got this as a birthday present, but my father before Benjamin wasn't exactly happy with it," she told him with a little laugh. "It's a Dara Celtic knot - the word Dara having come from the Irish Gaelic work _doire_ which means "oak", one of the trees living on Earth." He was very much fascinated with history, but what was "Celtic" and "Irish Gaelic"? "It's hard to explain to you," she went on, "but Celtic refers to old-age Ireland, England and Northwestern Europe. Let's say they were among the most ancient of the human race, and they were the wildest at heart, just like many of us humans, humanoids and aliens. These knots..." She motioned for hers and then his new one. "...are so distinct with very little written history. But what makes them so rare yet perfect is their never-ending paths, representing eternal love, friendship, loyalty and faith, and our overall spiritual life - no beginning, no end." She finished with a soft smile.

"This one knot in particular is the one I love the most, because it's a symbol of how we must remain strong in all times, easy and difficult. In the Druid times, the oak was most precious to them for exactly this reason. As for what it represents, it goes from wisdom, power, destiny, strength, endurance, and leadership. We always have inner strength even when the outside surface doesn't know that."

Weyoun took one last look at his new engraving. The knot meant eternity, no beginning and no end - last night when they "bonded", the link itself was drawn between them, forever binding them together no matter whatever challenges lay ahead. He didn't know what was in store, but no matter what, they belonged to each other the moment they first met.

Weyoun was forever tied to Mia as she was tied to him.

~o~

Tekeny Ghemor had passed away two days later, but Captain Sisko refused Gul Dukat's offer of returning the body over to the Dominion and his home planet so he could receive full military benefits, instead choosing to have him buried on Bajor, next to Major Kira's late father, Kira Taban. Mia was more than happy that Nerys took her words to heart, but also learned Julian had his part said to her. She laughed, too, as she remembered how Benjamin described to her the Gul's reaction to the decision to have the former Legate buried on Bajor instead. Ghemor would have been labeled an asset for the Dominion if Dukat's plan of turning Kira against him worked by revealing his involvement in the Kiessa Monastery massacre years back.

Weyoun had gone back with Dukat to the Founders, wherever they were now. She missed him already, but he had duties as she had. Through their link, they would send telepathic messages as often as they could spare without having to go through the troubles with the communication system without getting caught. They avoided talking about Dominion vs. Federation, and vice versa, matters, instead her telling him more about herself, and how she was originally from Puerto Rico, a country below the continent of North America, and everything she could muster about her home country on Earth, as well as how the whole planet was like every different planet of this universe. Her parents relocated to America before she was seven, and by then they met the Siskos, where Mia and Jake grew up together before her parents were dead as well as his own mother, and that was when Ben Sisko welcomed her into the family.

He told her his side as to how the Founders "created" the Vorta: centuries before, they were once little ape-like creatures living on Kurill Prime, living in trees and feasting on kava nuts and rippleberries as well as assorted other fruits, which explained why he never seemed to eat anything stronger. Even if he did, he wouldn't know the taste besides the texture and filling. And one day, he said, a Changeling was pursued by a mob of angry "solids" and hid with a family of Vorta who nurtured him back to health and kept him for as long as he wanted. In return for their kindness, he offered them a big return: one day they would be changed entirely from the way they were now into even more powerful creatures and spread across the universe. The shape-shifter had kept his word - and look at the way Weyoun's people were now. Cloned lackeys doing every cruel bidding; she couldn't blame them entirely for the crimes of the shape-shifters. The Vorta had no choice other than to obey or face death for their mistakes.

It had been less than two months since she and Weyoun parted. But she tried her hardest to mask her emotions from everyone else - yet she could have sworn she saw Odo watching her very closely. And tonight, with her father having invited everyone for dinner, the mood was not much better than the aching longing in her heart. She was really beginning to love Weyoun despite their differences, but right now, her family and friends weren't faring well, now that threats from the Dominion were greater than ever.

It had been awhile since she'd seen her brother, so it was great to see Jake again. He and Nog offered to help with dinner, but even they couldn't raise their father's spirits or the rest of the crew. Nor did the mention of three Federation ships vanishing in the past three weeks along the border of Cardassia. Thank God her father rose to change the topic.

"Chief, what about Kirayoshi? Is he walking yet?"

Miles' answer sounded like he'd been off elsewhere and tried to stay awake. "Oh, no. Not yet." He managed another drink of Scotch her father owned from Earth still.

"Odo, I understand you plan on going to Bajor next week. Do you plan to see Dr. Mora?"

Odo had his arms folded across his chest. "Actually," he answered, "I've cancelled my trip. There's been a seventy-five percent jump in the theft of medical supplies and food rations on DS9." His news didn't lighten the atmosphere any higher than that of Kirayoshi O'Brien not walking yet. Then Bashir announced he was retiring for the night; soon everyone else was filing out. That left Mia, Jake and Nog left, but Ben dismissed them for the night, saying he would clean up himself later. Mia wanted to say something, but he waved her off. Sighing, she decided to take her brother and his friend - Quark's nephew - to the bar since her shift was over.

"Thanks for the invitation, you guys," Nog complained over his drink. "That was a lot of fun." Mia couldn't offend him because she wasn't happy anymore than he was.

"Did you see the way Dad looked?" Jake asked. "He tried hiding it, but I could tell he was really depressed."

"He was," Mia answered. "I hate seeing him like this." She stirred hers thoughtfully. "I mean, look around at everyone; they go to Daddy for encouragement when the mood is this sour." She looked up when her boss approached them. "Ah, Quark, good to see you," she said happily.

"It's good to see you, too," he answered, and then turned to Jake and Nog. "I hope to see you two at twelve hundred hours."

His nephew answered - or rather questioned - glumly. "Why?"

" _Why_?" Quark repeated. "Because there's going to be an auction of some of the galaxy's rarest and most valuable antiquities. Here." He reached under the bar and pulled out a PADD. "Find something you like and make use of that stash of latinum you got under your bed." Nog shushed him, amusing him. "Oh, I see. You don't really keep it under your bed."

"No, of course not."

Jake leaned over and squinted at the list. "Where did you get all of this stuff, Quark?"

"I'm just conducting the auction," he replied. "The items are up for sale; the Bajorans found them in a cargo about a light-year from here. The cargo was crammed with valuable items of every description." Mia's attention was rapt, but her brother was really not interested. "Antiques, paintings, vehicles..." He was interrupted by his nephew.

Nog scoffed. "It's all a bunch of junk. Listen to this stuff: a mid-twenty-fourth century ceramic Romulan vase - _slightly_ cracked. A pair of shoes, date unknown. A mid-twentieth century human baseball card -"

That last one triggered her brother. "Baseball card?!" Jake snatched the PADD from Nog for him and Mia to lean in together and read it aloud at the same time. "Mint-condition _Willie Mays rookie card?!_ Nog, this is it!" This was perfect then; this was how they could cheer up their father because he LOVED baseball. "He'll go nuts when he sees this," Jake said, enthusiastic as Mia was.

"Tell him," Quark said, "that he can be here at twelve hundred hours and can bid, along with everyone else."

Mia agreed with her brother that he should go. Ben always did something for the both of them that they wanted to do this for him, too. "So it's agreed," she said. "All we have to do is give him this card. How hard can it be?"

~o~

Nog wasn't willing to spent five latinum - his life's savings, as he called it - on a baseball card for Ben Sisko, the captain who took him in and made everything possible. But Jake and Mia were both desperate; this was their father's happiness they were talking about. Reluctantly, he agreed, and all with a little "coaxing" from Jake.

Meanwhile, Mia was elsewhere, conversing with Weyoun in the air.

 _We are to revisit Deep Space 9,_ he told her. She nearly jumped up and down with joy. Finally, they would see each other again after what felt like so long a part - but this also came with some bad news. _The Founder requested that Kai Winn speak with me to discuss a private matter._

 _She probably fears an invasion from you and the whole Dominion,_ she stated coolly. She could almost see his crestfallen face that she would hurt him by talking about his side that way. This was the main disagreement which would cloud their long-distance relationship.

 _Why, Amelia, why would you always break my heart this way?_ he asked her.

 _Because while I love you, I can't love the Dominion you worship. So, please, let's talk about something other than this._ She changed the topic to the auction in the bar, working at the time while her brother and Nog bet four bars on the baseball card - but in the end, it wasn't them.

Some mysterious man had bid ten bars, which was twice of what Nog could afford. Mia almost broke down and cried that her father's baseball card was lost - but knowing Jake, he wouldn't give up on getting that thing for their father. _Oh, dear Mia,_ Weyoun spoke soothingly. _Don't cry, my sweet. I will be there soon._

 **The Dara Celtic Knot is one of many known Celtic knots, all of its history true as Mia has told. :) I thought it was perfect as her tattoo and her and Weyoun's soul mate bond symbol, also because I have a small amount of Irish in my own blood, and I am full American.**

 **I thought it fun to have Mia involved in acquiring the baseball card for her father. This is going to be a fun ride now that she is along for the ride with Jake and Nog. :D**


	11. Games of Cards and Spars

**We haven't even had the chance to have Jake's voice included, so now is the chance. :)**

Chapter Ten

Games of Cards and Spars

Jake Sisko was in too much turmoil, but his older sister being there for him as well as Nog didn't help anything. "Look," the young Ferengi was telling him, "I know you wanted that card, but we lost it, okay? So let's come up with something else to cheer your dad, huh?" He was grinning now, but that didn't help either. "Like a...new pair of shoes?"

Jake glowered at him. Really? "Shoes?" he repeated, stumped to his core. Seriously, an item of clothing which anyone else can have but never actually made a difference?

"Nog, seriously," Mia, bless her, said, twisting a long strand of hair around her finger. "A pair of shoes means nothing whilst that baseball card means the world to Daddy." She sighed heavily and leaned back as Jake leaned forward a little.

"Yeah, she's right. Shoes are stupid. We want to give Dad something that will bring a little joy into his life." Something special, and that baseball card was definitely the answer. Dad always made their lives happy despite losing a mother and Mia losing both of her parents, so this was their once-in-a-lifetime chance.

Mia giggled. "Kismet," she agreed, which Nog mistook for something sick and awkward.

" _Kiss me?_ " he repeated.

" _Kismet_ ," Jake clarified. "Means fate, destiny. We were MEANT to get that card for our father." Nog thought he was taking this baseball card issue way too seriously, but he didn't care. "It's not just the card," Jake told him. "It's our dad."

Mia stood up and went over to the replicator to ask for some afternoon snacks. "He's right, you know, Nog," she said, coming back with the stuff on Earth they loved: cheese and crackers. "Daddy has never let us down, so there's no way we can do this to him. He was always there for us when we needed it."

Since they were children, Jake loved her like they were brother and sister by blood, because she was the voice of reason even though she was still as young as he was and still more to catch on. "Yeah, we can't do that to him, so we NEED to get that card," he argued. "Nog, please."

Finally, his friend gave in. "Alright, what do you want to do?"

~o~

The day had finally come, and Weyoun couldn't have been more excited. Getting to see Mia again, see her father again - although his defiance against the Dominion was more than he could tolerate - as well as to speak to Kai Winn about the possible signing of a non-aggression pact with the Dominion. The Cardassians had ruined the system long before Benjamin Sisko came and assumed control of giving the planet a fixing up, and it could use a second chance without resorting to violence, hopefully.

Flanked by his two Jem'Hadar guards, Weyoun put on his smile and entered the airlock where the captain himself and his Chief of Operations were waiting. "Captain Sisko!" he said happily. "I can't tell you how happy I am to see you again."

Sisko didn't smile, just glowered at him. "I wish I could say the same," he said coldly.

Weyoun laughed. He knew the man didn't really like him, but maybe with a little more time, and while he was here, the captain could perhaps at least try to warm up to him. "How delightful! You feel comfortable enough around me to make jokes. I'm so pleased to see our relationship evolving beyond the stale adversarial stage." But his spirits were dampened soon enough.

"No, it's not," Sisko snapped. "But before you twist _that_ into a compliment, let me be blunt: I don't like the Dominion, I don't like what it stands for, and I don't like _you_. So let's dispense with the hollow pleasantries and stick to business."

His feelings hurt were not what he wanted today, especially when he wanted more than opposition with the man who was the father of the woman he loved, yet kept secret from the Founder this far. "I cannot tell you how it pains me to hear you say that, Captain," he said, wounded like a baby animal. "You see, I really like Deep Space 9, and I like _you_." Though his smile returned, Captain Sisko's firm glare remained in place. "And I think after this meeting with Kai Winn, I think we will be seeing a lot more of each other." The Kai was a reasonable and understanding woman, and with the right charm Weyoun could influence on her, chances of agreeing to a pact were close to a hundred percent.

He watched as the captain was the first to exit the airlock, allowing his anger to show and lay on the man's back. Weyoun wasn't sure how much longer he could keep up with this rejection by Mia's father. And speaking of Mia, he looked forward to seeing her again very soon.

~o~

They almost had the guy, but he refused to agree to a deal. Said something about refusing to do business with "soulless minions of orthodoxy", whatever that meant. Whoever he was, he had to be someone of illegal ventures. Either way, Jake began to think this was going to be much harder than he thought it would. But he would NOT give up, only for his father.

Mia went back to work, leaving him alone at the table, and Nog had gone off to do some reading up on their mystery man. "Jake!" he said excitedly. "He wants to see us!"

Jake knew who he was talking about, was happy, but after so much turmoil, he felt out of energy. "Who?"

"Dr. Giger. The man who bought the baseball card. He wants us to come to his quarters, and he's willing to make a deal. He left a message for us about an hour ago. It said to meet him at eighteen hundred hours."

Jake looked down at his watch, gaping. "That's in ten minutes; let's go!" They were off in a flash. He couldn't believe their luck; they were finally going to get that card for Dad - but he wasn't sure about this mysterious Dr. Giger, whoever he was. He was a shady-looking guy, and those men were always trouble.

~o~

Mia couldn't believe the boys were actually going through with confronting - or rather, bargaining with - the strange Dr. Elias Giger, whom she knew nothing about. Whoever he was, he must do illegal research, which was exactly what her brother told her. She was going to keep her fingers crossed from now on until however this problem was fixed; if the boys were in trouble in any way, it was on her because the minute Jake decided to go on this little witch hunt, they should have predicted they were getting in deep with the sharks.

They met up with her again while she was at her dabo table, waiting for the next customers. Giger was exactly what they suspected him of: a mad scientist who believed death could be conquered, by means of a cellular regeneration and entertainment chamber. Mia winced as she asked them what he meant by "entertainment"; Nog explained that the doctor's words of use were "so your cells never get bored". A single person could spend up to eight hours a day in order to prolong their lifespan. Immortality was the correct term.

Chromoelectric wavelengths emitting biogenic energy to prolong a person's life? Mia believed anything was possible, but eternal life? Nobody on Earth had ever been able to do that, so why would anyone in this universe attempt that? Jake and Nog also agreed the man was batshit crazy, but they had to go through with retrieving a neodymium power cell as well as five liters of anaerobic metabolites suspended in a hydrosaline solution - the main equipment for completing the chamber. They had to do it discreetly and cutting deals with Chief O'Brien and Dr. Bashir for them; Federation scientists labeled Giger's ethics "questionable", so if anyone found out - even Constable Odo and worst of all, their father Captain Sisko - they were all dead meat.

While the boys were off doing their "business", she waited for her shift to end. She just wanted to go see Weyoun, wherever he was. But she had to ask Constable Odo without exciting anything suspicious with him.

Weyoun had spoken to Kai Winn about signing the non-aggression treaty, to which she'd voiced her fears to Benjamin about Bajor being conquered. Mia knew Winn didn't trust her father especially after his advice for Bajor to remain alone for its own safety, though for the sake of the present, she was going to have to now. They couldn't have another system align with the Dominion for the reason of saving its own skin only to be occasionally visited by Jem'Hadar and the Vorta representative himself.

Now that she was here in front of his quarters, Mia shifted from foot to foot, wondering if this was a good idea after all. It wasn't like his Jem'Hadar would report their "activities", but she was nervous more than before. Finally, she forced herself to buzz the door, which opened at the open command for her to enter - only to find phaser rifles aimed at her, held by Jem'Hadar.

"Oh, you fools, lower your weapons," a familiar silken yet calloused voice admonished. "This is a guest I requested." Weyoun smiled down at her and bowed his head forward. "Please, come in. And forgive the Jem'Hadar; they're not exactly warm and inviting as I am."

Mia stepped in, and the doors closed behind her. "Is there a way you and I can spend some time alone without the supervision of your men here?" she asked with a critical eye on these creatures; how could she forget the one who killed the Weyoun before him? "Because we _did_ agree on working to...harness your physical abilities." She batted her lashes at him, meaning two things besides the practice of hand-to-hand combat. Weyoun smirked deviously at the hidden meaning.

"I don't believe I will need your company, gentlemen," he told his guards, starting to walk over to her and lead her out when, out of the blue, there was a very strange humming which caused the floor beneath their feet to vibrate in the slightest. Weyoun froze where he was, closing his eyes as his ears trembled unpleasantly. Mia looked down, tried her best to conceal her shock; Dr. Giger's machinery was working - but it was also beneath _Weyoun's_ room! The Jem'Hadar scanned the floor but didn't seem to detect anything for their master to piece it together. Still standing, Mia watched as Weyoun lowered his body to the floor and placed his right ear against it to try and listen for anything that would help.

"What's going on down there?"

~o~

Whatever was going on down below his guest quarters, Weyoun was sure someone in the Federation was conspiring against him. By now, everyone aboard this station knew he was here, but he couldn't be too safe here either. Even his sensitive ears didn't detect the actual activity below his floor. He could hear movement below and the strange technology, but whatever was it? He was more than determined to find out, but for now, it was him and Mia in her secret basement space.

Mia stood there ravishing in her tight black tank and leggings, feet bare. Weyoun felt like he wanted to pass out just thinking about practicing his new-to-improve combat skills with her; to think of the bared sections of her body shining with perspiration made him want to take her on the floor afterwards. No furniture obstacles for them, either. "Take off your boots then, Mr. Diplomat," Mia drawled. This irresistible little minx was impatient to get started, and he loved it. After obeying her order and joining her in the middle of the room, he followed her next order: "Assume the position." She was crouching slightly forward, knees bent, and fists raised. He mimicked, though he was nervous. He was not physically built, but he was eager to take the chance and learn to defend himself and anyone else.

"You ready to begin?"

He narrowed his eyes and smirked at the same time. "Aren't you going to allow me to assume the ready position first? I'm barely settled..."

"Oh, your enemies won't let you be ready." To demonstrate, she charged him before she was gone in a flash. He blinked; how did she vanish just like that? He turned his head in every direction in search of her before he felt her presence behind him and a great energy knocking him forward and onto the ground. He looked up while trying to pull himself together; she smirked at the defenseless position he was in before she threw her right arm out at him. Weyoun barely had time to evade the telekinetic force before his chest felt like the wind had knocked the oxygen out of his lungs, and he found himself down once more on the cold, hard floor.

He laughed despite his lower hand in the challenge. "Why, Miss Sisko, give your pupil time to compose himself, will you?"

"I warned you that your enemies won't be ready for you to recollect yourself," she replied, eyes twinkling deviously. "Practice makes perfect."

"And perfect the practice," Weyoun answered, throwing out his hand as the surge coursed through his body and into his limb's channels as his own shot its way at her; she'd expected it to happen and dodged her way out of the way, pouncing into the air and spinning forward and round into a ball before jumping back into place in crouching tiger position; tiger being one of the wildcats on Earth she talked to him about.

"You didn't go soft on me just because I'm a woman."

"Because man or woman, anyone is capable of anything," Weyoun sneered, ready to charge her now, anticipating any telekinesis she had up her sleeve, which was something he originally lacked in himself. He was on his feet now and jumped into the air, sailing and spinning at the same time over her head and behind her on both feet steadily. The inner fighter in him channeled enough energy to take her down without leaving bruise marks, though he planned on honing more of his skills while they were parted. He would be going far enough to sustain some petty injuries of his own while he was without her guidance.

"Try harder then," Mia dared. "Try again. And try something more than just dodging invisible forces and blows."

He leered at her. "Sword play, darling." He saw her flip backwards in four, five turns before she was in front of the closet doors. Opening them both, she picked up two impressive silver blades. She tossed one into the air, and to his own surprise, he caught it just as he lunged for it and wheeled into a ball until he let himself loose and kneeling enough to snatch the blade. It was a Klingon _kar'takin_ , one of the most powerful and protective, so aggressive and fierce. Courage, valor, and power. With painless speed, Weyoun found himself assuming the position again as she assumed the stance while still standing where she was. One brown and one blue eye each met with liquid amethyst.

"Bring it on, handsome," Mia challenged. He stood up and spun his whole body around, the _kar'takin_ balanced in his delicate hands much to his own surprise. Lately he'd read reports on the subject of love, in which it was said to strengthen the two people in it together, and he could feel it in his whole body. Then his blade clashed with Mia's own, the silver steels emitting a piercing shrieking sound which hurt his ears, but he wasn't giving up now.

However, in the end, there was no more practice sword fighting, as Weyoun found the man beat by the woman; his _kar'takin_ was knocked out, and he was on the floor and on his back, his partner over him and dominating him, smirking that she'd won this round. He was fighting to catch his breath at getting tossed around by the woman of his affections. "Did I bruise you after all, my dear?" he asked gently, brushing strands of sweaty hair out of her face.

"Not really," she answered, "but before we report back to our separate ways, how about you bruise me in _my_ bed?" She jerked her head in the direction of the stairs. "So your Jem'Hadar aren't listening to us?" Oh, how dare she get him hard again? Weyoun shook his head and laughed. How could he say no to a naughty invitation like that?

~o~

Odo had been keeping his own eyes out for Mia since the Vorta ambassador's arrival on the station. He did not miss how there was something amiss when she asked him where the Dominion diplomat would be staying. He had his suspicions that there was more going on between those two than anyone else knew about.

Nerys noticed how he would spot the two but did not seem to think the same way he was. She didn't ask, though, but had her own wonders, too. Now Odo found his chance when Weyoun was alone and wandering the halls where Mia's quarters were, making sure he wasn't seen before melting into a loose mass of shimmering liquid gold and slipping under the door so he could see what was going on between them.

What he discovered shocked him utterly.

He changed into a statue so they wouldn't see him. Mia and Weyoun...naked and in bed...together...Weyoun on top of her with his bare back and buttocks revealed when Odo did not want to see, pumping hastily into Mia whose hands were tied by scarves to the two posters at the head of her bed...Mia crying out with each thrust and him growling bestially and telling her she might have won the "round" before, but now he was in control...

Odo changed back into glob form and slipped back out under the door and into his normal self. He could not shake off what he'd seen. Mia was having carnal relations with the enemy Dominion ambassador, and it was wrong...but Odo had known Mia all along to know that she knew exactly what she was doing. But he hoped to the gods that she knew what she'd gotten herself into.

 **Whoo, this was hella fun to do. :) We added some of our own levels of badass fighting skills which we will later be seeing Weyoun do than he did on the show. So, Odo knows about the secret love affair but won't tell anyone. But we know the happiness won't last for long. And Jake and Nog are gonna end up in some trouble. Stay tuned!**


	12. Complicated Investigations

Chapter Eleven

Complicated Investigations

Now that the deals with O'Brien and Bashir were out of the way, now Jake was working on the speech he was helping Major Kira with for the Bajoran Agricultural Ministry, but Nog playing a selection of Worf's Klingon opera tunes was rendering it hard to concentrate; filtering out subharmonic distortions, yeah right. Well, it was tough for them both because they were getting the last of the supplies and finish the deal soon.

The music was getting on his nerves to the last straw before Jake finally yanked it out of his friend's hands and turned it off. Grinning triumphantly, he said, "Now, listen to this for a second." He held up the PADD which was the speech, reading it out in what he hoped was his "best" speech giver voice: "'Thank you for that kind introduction, and thank you for inviting me to address you here tonight. I always thought it odd that the topic of water recollection was treated as such a dry subject.'" He could barely keep his giggles in when he stopped there and looked at Nog, who wasn't smiling and had his arms folded across his chest. "Is that funny?"

"No." Just like that, he took the music recorder back and turned those god-awful tunes on again.

"Well, I didn't think so either," Jake said, offended and huffing away. Great, this was all just great. They were close to getting that baseball card back, but now they were wasting their time with getting supplies for a crazy man's experiments.

They were done in less than an hour, and now that Jake gave Kira the speech. "Would you watch it with that thing?!" he said when Nog accidentally poked him with a metal pole.

"I'm trying to stay out of the way!" the Ferengi returned. Jake put down the baggage and reached to ring the buzzer. The doors didn't open, nor was there the call. "Maybe he's sleeping in his...cellular entertainment thing again," Nog joked, though it wasn't funny at all. Jake tried again; still nothing. It was then that he noticed the door wasn't locked, which wasn't a good sign. He pressed the top button which opened the door for them. He and Nog froze in shock.

The quarters were empty. Both Dr. Giger and his equipment were gone.

~o~

"I hope you found our talks as rewarding as I have, your eminence," Weyoun politely told Kai Winn as he walked with her near her guest quarters. "And, may I inquire if you give the First Minister a positive recommendation regarding the non-aggression pact?"

She was smiling back to him, almost shyly, which he thought worked to plan. His charm had really done its magic on her. But then her answer disappointed him. "I'm afraid...I can't reveal my answer of recommendation to the First Minister. You understand." She wasn't asking him either. But Weyoun would not allow her to see how disillusioned he was.

"Of course. Of course; forgive me for even asking. It's enough for me to know that you and I have found so many...common interests. I feel like we are so much alike."

She was still smiling when she reached to put her hand on his left ear; his nerves went up at the sensation of touch. He knew what she was doing, she was feeling his _pagh,_ which was the spiritual force of all beings. Namely Bajorans assessed it by grasping the being's ear. Weyoun fought to keep the smile on his face the whole time, but his spirits were shot down once again by simple yet harsh words.

"No, we're nothing alike. Nothing at all." She referred to the fact he didn't share what her world believed in. He watched her go before letting out an infuriated exhale of breath at the Kai turning him down.

~o~

"Well, there's no record of a Dr. Giger being in those quarters," Constable Odo said to the boys.

Jake couldn't believe what he was hearing. They were experiencing the same thing; they didn't just dream it up together! "He _was_ there, Odo," he insisted. And then Nog blew it all.

"Maybe the...soulless minions of orthodoxy finally caught up with him."

Odo's attention was on high alert now. They were doomed now. Now he wanted to know more. "The _who?_ "

Jake sighed. "We don't know they are, but they were after Dr. Giger's...cellular regeneration and entertainment chamber. It's a device used to keep the cells in your body from getting bored. You see, he used mitochondrial tricks to keep people's cells entertained, so they wouldn't die off. And as a result, these people would...live forever." He gulped nervously at the look the constable was giving them both. He felt himself shrinking now.

"Do you really think he's going to charge us for filing false reports?" Nog panicked as soon as they left the security chief's office. "Obstructing justice? Being public nuisances? I can't have that on my Academy record!" Jake liked to think Odo was just trying to scare them, but he wasn't sure. He looked upwards and felt his jaw drop when he saw a familiar regal-looking figure in gold. "Nog, look! It's Kai Winn. Do you see who she's talking to?"

It was the Bajoran Vedek who bid against them at the auction.

"He bid the _mandala_ for two bars if you remember," Jake explained. "But dropped out then. And do you remember a _mandala_ being known as a religious Bajoran artifact?" It was actually the baseball card that was important, obviously, but now that he remembered the _mandala_ chest that contained it. "That Vedek must have been working for the Kai in her interest in that thing. And when they lost, the Kai must have gotten angry...and we know how dangerous she is when she's angry." So it made sense now: she ordered Giger kidnapped to obtain the chest. But Nog wasn't convinced.

"Jake, I'm starting to worry for you." Jake rolled his eyes; these Ferengi honestly need to be introduced to a human strategy: rearing the lion into its death.

~o~

Luckily, she stole time away to get away from Quark's bar to say good-bye to Weyoun. She could have telepathically sent him the message, but she needed to tell him herself. They would be parted for awhile longer again, but she needed to see him one last time for now. Thankfully, no one saw her but his Jem'Hadar guards when she called his name. He paused, turned and saw her. His eyes widened.

"Mia! What are you doing here?" he exclaimed. "What if you were followed?"

She shook her head. "No one followed me, love," she promised. "I came to bid you good-bye for now, and tell you I love you one last time because it will be yet another painful while before we see each other again."

His violet blues widened with surprise at her confession before she threw her arms around him and kissed him passionately. She didn't care that people could walk in and see them at the moment; she wanted this kiss to last while it could before his ship would depart...but sadly, it did end. Weyoun broke it apart, breathing softly and looking down into her eyes. "I must go now, my flower," he said softly, like he was out of breath for running. "We will see each other again before you see it coming." He brushed a few strands of hair from her face, then leaned down and kissed the tear away that was falling. Why was she crying? She had not cried since Weyoun 4 died, and he wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. "I swear to you from this day forward."

She let him go before she turn and ran back to the main part of the ship, ready to get back to work. But the sooner she returned did she see her brother and Nog leaving the captain's office. She could hear them arguing. "Boys!" she called out, joining them. "Any luck?"

"No," Jake said glumly. "Giger's gone, no record of him being on the ship - which we were threatened by the constable with charges of false reports - and we made a mistake of thinking Kai Winn kidnapped the doctor and the card with it. Now Dad is angry at us and confined us to quarters."

Mia gasped. She knew it, she knew it! This had gone too far, and their father was furious now, and Odo probably just as worse given the bad experiences Nog had with him in the past. Now what were they going to do? And Jake was still talking about continuing despite Nog protesting him to get out of it and -

Now they were no longer on the elevator. The three of them were surrounded by unfamiliar walls and control consoles. "Okay, this isn't what I had in mind," Nog said.

A crack of a rifle was heard then. None other than a phaser rifle held by a _Jem'Hadar._

"We're in trouble," Jake whispered to her.

They were forced to sit down on the bench the opposite from the table in front of them, the guard gruffly ordering them to wait until the Vorta came to speak with them. Mia sat up straight, worried out of her skin since Quark would be expecting her back soon. However, not long after they seated, the doors opened, and in strolled Weyoun. He looked at all three of them briefly before continuing his march for the table and sitting down, regarding all three of them with a firm scowl. It wasn't for her, but for the boys. Mia did her best to remain stoic.

"Do you think I'm a fool?" Mia looked at her brother, seeing the disbelief on his face. But he said nothing, instead shaking his head. "Let's start at the beginning," Weyoun said calmly. "What is the nature of your relationship with Dr. Elias Giger?"

"We barely know him," Jake said. "He had a baseball card that I wanted to give to our father..." He nodded to her. "...to cheer him up. My father's the station commander, by the way," he added.

But Weyoun couldn't care less. "I know who your father is," he said with soft, dangerous knowledge. "Go on."

"That's it," Jake insisted. "We wanted the card, and so we agreed to help him get a few things for his research. We got all the equipment, but he disappeared about three hours ago, and we haven't seen him since."

Weyoun's eyes narrowed. He didn't believe any of Jake's story, and Mia knew it. Then his eyes rotated up to the Jem'Hadar standing guard in the doorway, who nodded and turned to leave. Then the Vorta returned his poisonous stare to the three of them. "Do you really expect me to believe," he said, venom lacing his words, "that everything you've been doing the last twenty-two hours had been perfectly innocent? That it was merely a... _coincidence_ that Dr. Giger had been running experiments with highly charge polarized particles beneath _my_ quarters?" His face now contorted to the verge of laughing at such "nonsense". "I suppose there's an innocent explanation to the secret meetings you've been having with virtually the entire senior staff of Deep Space 9? _Or_..." His voice lowered to a deeper, menacing baritone. "...that Kai Winn supposedly met with you after leaving ME?" He slowly stood from behind the table and leaned over, liquid eyes wild like a visceral beast.

"I suggest..." he growled. "...that you stop playing games with me and _tell me the truth._ "

Jake broke. "This is all just a misunderstanding! NOTHING is going on. And we're certainly not involved in some secret plot against -" He stopped upon hearing the door open again.

Now Mia saw the face of Dr. Elias Giger, and there was the chest in his hand. He was bald atop the head, with dark hair behind his head and curling around his ears. Seeing Jake and Nog, his face twisted. "You betrayed me," he accused angrily. "You turned me over to these soulless minions of orthodoxy." Mia looked from him to Weyoun, seeing that he was watching the man with interest. She realized that it was HE who ordered the scientist's kidnapping which the boys had thought Kai Winn was responsible for. Another Jem'Hadar came up and took the chest from him, laying it on the table's surface. Weyoun walked around the table.

"So," he said, "there ARE secrets after all. There shouldn't be any secrets between...friends." He was now looking at Jake, taking both him and his sister off-guard. After he couldn't get their father to like him, why should he expect Jake to do the same? "Jake, I DO want to be your friend," he said as he opened the chest. That was when Jake finally spoke.

"Wait...I'll tell you the truth."

The baseball card was in Weyoun's hand, but his attention was on her brother. "I'm listening."

"We weren't suppose to divulge this, but since you left us no choice...we're working for Starfleet Intelligence."

Nog lowered his eyes to the ground. "Oh, no," he moaned to himself.

"We are investigating the man whose picture is in your hand right now." Weyoun's face was tighter than before, but he didn't look convinced any more than he was with the actual truth. "Until yesterday, that man - one Willie Mays - did not exist in any historical documents. Then..." Mia leaned forward and put her face in both hands, shaking her head. She was feeling embarrassed now. "...in the blink of an eye, that card appeared on the station. And at that same moment, a bust of Willie Mays appeared in New York. So, there's only one explanation: we suspect that this man is from the future."

"A time traveler?" Weyoun questioned.

"That's right. And so far, that card is the only link we have to him. We must find out what he is planning on doing in the past, what he may have done already. We _need_ that card; the entire future of the galaxy may depend on us tracking down Willie Mays." Once he was finished, he sat down between Nog and Mia, and now Weyoun's face was graced with a small, disturbing smile - to them, mostly.

"I believe you."

Nog looked up in shock. "You do?"

"Yes." The smile widened. "That is, I believe your first story." Mia let loose a laugh of relief with both boys. "That you're two innocent boys and a young lady trying to give a gift to Captain Sisko."

Jake seemed like he was considering the "friend" offer, but he was on his guard as much as his sister always was. "You're very wise."

"Which still leaves the question..." He set the Willie Mays card back down and now looked to Dr. Giger, who had not spoken since being brought in. "...what YOU were doing beneath my quarters," Weyoun said, standing in front of him with his hands clasped in front of him. But before the doctor could speak, Nog piped up.

"He's harmless. He's just working on his way to becoming...immortal."

"Really?" Weyoun looked excited, like a child who awoke to Christmas morning and was ready to open presents. "I have, shall we say, a background in creative genetics. I'd be most interested in hearing your theories."

The doctor looked slightly bashful but very pleased that someone was finally on the verge of accepting. "Well, it may take some time to explain my theories, but..."

Mia interrupted, wanting to take her brothers out now and finally give that card to their father. "Gentlemen, forgive me, but can we get out of here?"

Weyoun smiled at her. "Of course." Thanking him, she along with her brother and Nog took the baseball card and asked for permission to be beamed back to the station. And when they returned, the storm clouds had cleared amongst the crew, and Benjamin loved the gift the trio presented to him.

 **Well, it was fun having Mia involved in the boys' adventure, and onward to even bigger problems.**


	13. Two Weeks' Notice

**Along the course, Mia's views on the Vorta was an opening of my eyes from "What You Didn't Take", a very dark story by saphirefox-irl.**

Chapter Twelve

Two Weeks' Notice

Two weeks passed since Weyoun left her alone once again on Deep Space 9, and Mia was not happy. Things between her and her father were strained, but her support from everyone else aboard - including Odo, most notably - was better than ever. Jake was on her side, too, but even he, too, questioned her decision to keep what had come as a surprise and shock. One that Weyoun knew nothing about just yet but would in the event of time.

She was pregnant with his child, and that would spell disaster not only for them, but for both their affiliations.

Mia knew more than enough about the origins of the Vorta from their genetic manipulations by the Founders, but the ability to make and conceive their own? Nothing about that at all. Come to think of it, Weyoun never thought his seed could actually make a new life form with her eggs either. She was scared now.

She had it in her to lie about who the identity of the father was, saying she had a one-night stand with someone she met at Quark's and that she wasn't wholly ready to tell them yet, but once the child was born, they would find out eventually. She was a human, Weyoun a Vorta, so their baby would be half and half. Benjamin was disappointed in her even though he did promise to support her, but things weren't the same since then. They barely spoke other than on duty. She couldn't contact Weyoun without security or communications finding out eventually, but the only one who knew the truth about who was the sperm donor was Odo. Dr. Bashir helped her so far with her condition, too. She was almost two weeks along.

Rom and Leeta were getting married in two more weeks, which she was happy for them, and Leeta asked her to be her bridesmaid which she couldn't say no to. But now she and her husband-to-be were arguing over a wedding dress for her. Bajoran and Ferengi, how funny. Ferengi men believed that women wearing less have a say in less, but Leeta wasn't willing to sacrifice her individuality. Rom should be so lucky he got a new love to make up for the one he lost; his first marriage which produced Nog had been a signed contract for five years, but he had eventually fallen in love with her that he didn't read the rules of extension, resulting in her father taking matters into his own hands, and she left Rom for a wealthier man.

The latest dress they looked at for Leeta was a near-resemblance to one of the every day garments she and Mia wore everyday for work - Leeta was a dabo girl for Quark, too, and such a darling that Mia considered another great friend in the universe. "I like it," Rom told her of the dress, which was of Risian tradition. Risian culture consisted of sexual nature - on Earth, the closest in resemblance was Indian-Hindu, to Mia, and it brought to mind the _Kama Sutra_ , the contents also bearing a resemblance to Risa's mysterious intimate practice of _jamaharon_. "Do you?" Leaning in herself, Mia made a face. You had all the time in the world, in her opinion, to wear a revealing costume, but on the wedding day, she thought of traditional like on Earth.

And Leeta didn't like it any more than she did. "Rom," she gasped, "it's two handkerchiefs and a _loin cloth!_ Ferengi tradition or no Ferengi tradition, I am NOT going to be naked at my wedding!"

"Who said anything about naked?" Rom asked. "You'll still have the loin cloth when you lose the handkerchiefs."

Garak and Ziyal were watching the banter between the couple with vague amusement; poor Garak was going to be the one to make the dress for her. Now that they exhausted the list, there was nothing else to show. "There IS nothing else," he insisted. "I have showed you a hundred and fifty different wedding dresses from Tellarite modern to Risian tradition, and you have hated them all."

Leeta looked gob smacked, before she got herself back together. "Well, I liked number thirty-eight. It was more covering." But Rom made a face.

Ziyal - Gul Dukat's daughter from a Bajoran woman during the Occupation - decided to pick one for them. "How about sixty-four?" Number sixty-four was a good compromise of both Tellarite conservative and revealing Risian, but the couple both made a face, making Garak's face twitch.

"Well, at least they agree on something."

"You two," Mia said, getting all eyes on her, "I'm sure Garak will make the best dress that you will both agree on, since no one can agree on any of what we've seen."

The Cardassian tailor gave her a nervous smile. "My dear, you do have a point."

"Leeta! Mia!" Quark barked from the stairs. "Both you girls' fifteen minute breaks were up an hour ago!"

Rom took the PADD from Leeta which still had the dress he loved but she hated. "Brother," he said, wanting his older brother's opinion, "what do you think of this dress?"

Quark scoffed and snatched the PADD. "I don't _want_ to think about it. All I know is that any marriage where a female is allowed to speak and wearing clothing is doomed to failure." Then he turned to both Mia and the bride-to-be. "Your dabo tables await."

Well, Mia knew she had to get back to work, but then Leeta gasped. "There he is!" There was her father walking the Promenade with Chief O'Brien. "Rom, Mia, let's talk to him!" Asking Benjamin to officiate their wedding was the one sure thing they would ever agree on. If this was what married life was like, then Mia was having her doubts about it. But then again, raising a baby on her own if Weyoun didn't want to marry or be in its life? That had to be worse than anything.

Miles had recently moved his family to Earth because of the recent dangers in the front lines, which was for the best. Ben had tried to talk Mia and Jake into leaving, but Mia felt it was her responsibility to stay aboard the station. She was endangering herself and her child, but she had to do this. She soon found herself dragged up the stairs by Leeta who called out to her father, but then Rom made a spectacle and a laugh from Mia when he asked, "Will you marry me?"

"Uh..." He was looking at Chief O'Brien, who was trying not to laugh.

"Oh, no, I meant us. I mean," Rom stuttered, "would you...perform our wedding ceremony?"

"It would be a great honor to be married by the Emissary," Leeta said happily, making Benjamin a little flustered.

"And it's not for another two weeks," Rom added, "so you'll have plenty of time to get ready."

"Well, I guess I'll have to start brushing up on my Bajoran," Benjamin said with an awkward smile, making Mia go over and hug him. And then Miles leaned in to whisper to him, prompting Benjamin to excuse himself. Mia saw that a crowd was gathered before one of the windows of the Promenade - and she saw why. The wormhole had opened, releasing dozens of Dominion starships. This was the fifth time in weeks that they would enter the Alpha Quadrant. No longer caring about her job at the present - Quark was the least of her worries - Mia joined everyone. She listened to her father and O'Brien's conversation.

"I wonder how many Jem'Hadar are on Cardassia now."

"Too many," Sisko answered.

The chief shook his head. "Why don't they just attack already?"

Benjamin placed his hands on Mia's shoulders when she came to stand before him while still keeping his grave gaze on the enemy convoys in the area. "I have a feeling you're going to get your wish," he said grimly.

~o~

Weyoun had been practicing harnessing his newfound powers he and Mia shared in his alone time. The Founders had not found out yet - and no one else - and no one knew but his loyal Jem'Hadar guards. Mia was not with him physically, but in spirit. She was proud of him and praised him, criticized him for almost messing up when he needed it. They had a wonderful working relationship even if their views differed. Mia continued to criticize him how he was serving solids - inflexible solids - who were the same as they were if not naturally disposing, feasting and such that they would.

"If they truly loved their 'children'," she said once, "they would let them have free will. To hell with prices to be paid, everyone deserves it. Including your people. Don't you want to be away from being killed off for the pleasure of your so-called Makers? Enjoy precious life while you still have it?"

It was a miracle no one caught on. Yet. Mia knew how to get to him; he was wondering if she was right after all, but did his best to shove her down to do his job. However, she never left his mind. Her words haunted him everywhere he went.

He suddenly felt the waves when Mia spoke to him, only it was a mix of emotions when he sensed her fright at what she had to say to him. _My love?_ he probed gently. The response he received wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear, what he never thought possible, and it scared him now. _By the Founders..._

 _Yes, Weyoun. I'm two weeks along._

He wondered how could this happen, and why didn't the Founders pay mind over one of the most important factors of biology? Or perhaps they never took to mind that sexual need and conception were the most natural in the universe, never thought it would bypass their controlled genetics...and never thought their most trusted servant would turn his attention to a woman of the opposite side. He tried to think that gods don't make mistakes, but how could he when THIS happened? _I don't know how this happened,_ was all he could send to Mia, knowing it would disappoint her that it wasn't what she wanted to hear from him.

 _I don't either,_ she responded, surprising him. _But I'm afraid. Everyone knows, but they don't know who the father is. I told them it was a one-night stand at Quark's bar._

It was a plausible lie, good way to keep them from prying, but who knew how long it would last. Word getting out that _he,_ Weyoun, Dominion ambassador, was the child's father, would mean that it might get back to the female Founder herself, and she would have his head and him cloned again. _We'll figure something out._ It was feeble and without merit, and he knew it. He did not know how they were going to be together and raise their child - which was impossible - with the signing of the non-aggression pact issued out, the Federation sure to refuse to side with them. The Romulans, Tholians and Miradorn had joined the Dominion, but that left out Bajor for now. The time would come, eventually.

~o~

Mia ended the connection with Weyoun as she helped Ben prepare dinner, but they barely exchanged much of a conversation. Jake was home for now, and now he was having dinner with the family. His first home-cooked meal in awhile. Mia could cook herself, but not as good as their father. "Thanks for the invite, sis," he told her when he walked into the dining area and helped set the table. "And Dad. I haven't had a home-cooked meal since -"

"Since the last time you were here," Benjamin finished.

"Sounds about right," Mia agreed. Then their father handed her the PADD containing the latest news headline - none other than Jake's first article. "Oh, yeah, we saw this earlier, brother. Read the headline." He grinned at her and followed through.

"'Bajorans Continue Negotiations with the Dominion'." He went on to read at Ben's curt order. " 'Station commander opposes the non-aggression pact'." Mia suppressed a giggle when Benjamin mentioned the "by" line. "By Jake Sisko," her brother finished proudly. But Dad wasn't happy as he sat down to join both his children.

"Should have warned me."

"I was waiting for the right moment," Jake insisted.

"The _right_ moment was BEFORE you published the article. As the right moment to have a baby is when you're married," he added with a look to Mia. She lowered her eyes in shame, and Jake spoke up his defense. He was excited that he was going to be an uncle and not caring it was unplanned for.

"Look, Dad, we're both sorry. But let's avoid the baby talk for Mia's sake." Thanks to Jake. "Aren't you glad I got a job?" he asked with a big grin and flashing the article.

"You mean, this isn't a onetime thing?" Benjamin asked, disbelieved.

"Nope. I'm an official correspondent for the Federation News Service."

The mood lifted, but not for Mia. Her father was disappointed in her that she was going to be a single, unmarried new mother, but her brother was a reporter now, and he wasn't giving up on his novel either. This was a good way for Jake to see his work in print, but their father still wasn't so sure about this.

~o~

The Dominion cargo ships were here, so might as well unload what they brought this time. Odo oversaw the bringing in while Kira Nerys and Jadzia Dax aided in checking every one of them. Everything bore the same thing: thousands of wrapped Cardassian yamok sauce, which was a delicacy on Earth enjoyed with asparagus, but it being here raised suspicions amongst them all. "Who would have thought about smuggling in ten thousand wrappages of yamok sauce?" Nerys mused. Odo already knew it, but she already figured and voiced. "Of course. Quark. That little worm!" she spat, turning to Dax. "He thinks the Cardassians are going to retake the station."

Dax shrugged. "He's a Ferengi. You can't blame him for his bets."

Quark was the thorn in their sides, switching back and forth between friend and foe, most of all to the chief of security himself, but the most important factor was that he was loyal to everyone of Deep Space 9. She had questioned why he would have done such a thing, but took this as a warning that this would happen. "What would you like me to do with it?" he asked Kira, the woman he loved for as long as he'd known it, but ever since last month when confessing to her - and the "incident" with the end of escaping the planet Gaia, centuries into the future which was altered by his subsequent self for a chance at love with Kira - things had been, well, cool between them. But Nerys had been severely injured, would have died if the future Odo hadn't changed the flight plan so they didn't fly into two hundred years ago. She'd been angry that he'd erased the existence of eight thousand innocent people, that it didn't make it right. Odo at the present didn't think so, but his older self did.

Expectedly, Nerys didn't answer his question, but when Lt. Dax asked her, she finally said, "Whatever you want to."

Dax nodded then. "Dump it. All of it."

He nodded and ordered it done. While he did so, he thought back when he had admitted to Mia personally that he'd harbored passionate feelings for Kira Nerys for so long but never had the chance to tell her because she was seeing Shakaar Edon until a visit to the Bajoran Kenda Shrine which told them they weren't meant to be. Despite Dax's advice on hard-working relationships, Kira still didn't attempt to patch it up with Shakaar; Odo had always wanted to tell her but couldn't find it in him to tell her how much he loved her because he didn't want to destroy anything between them, choosing to remain good friends with her. He'd waited for centuries to tell her.

And Mia, the hopeless romantic she was - and having that Vorta's offspring - insisted he have it in him to ask her to dinner sometime. These romantic situations were never his cup of tea; he'd had enough of them with that woman Chalan Aroya who never really interested him, even when she asked him to dinner once. Even Garak was disappointed in his disinterest.

But now he was thinking perhaps a dinner date might be a start, whether it was in his comfort zone or not.

Later, everyone met in the wardroom with Captain Sisko. This meeting had to do with the signing of the non-aggression pact with the Dominion, starting with the Romulans. Worf objected and fumed with uncontrollable fury. "The Romulans...I always knew they were without honor! Now they have proven it."

"When did they sign the treaty?" Dr. Bashir asked.

"Yesterday," Sisko answered somberly. When O'Brien stated desperation, Benjamin shook his head. "Technically, they're not siding with anyone; it's a non-aggression pact."

Kira shook her head angrily, Odo doing the same. "Which means that if the Dominion attacks, they just sit back and do nothing." The Romulans, Miradons and Tholians...the Dominion was really making in-roads in the Gamma Quadrant. But there was still Bajor talking to the Dominion, which Nerys objected. "My people will NEVER sign that treaty or any agreement with the Dominion."

"And meanwhile, Jem'Hadar warships come through the wormhole every day," O'Brien said disgustedly.

"Everything is going to stop," Sisko said, taking back the lead. "I've spoken to Starfleet Command; they've agreed that no Dominion starship will ever enter the Alpha Quadrant again. We are going to mine the entrance to the wormhole. Prevent the Dominion from bringing anymore reinforcements from Cardassia."

Prevention meant fighting back. Nobody gave up on anything without a fight, and the people of the Dominion were ruthless; the obvious love of Mia's life served them faithfully and would aid in following through on attacking back. She would be devastated with the results. "If we try to stop those convoys, it may very well start a war," Odo spoke up, Kira saying nothing and lowering her gaze to the table.

Sisko regarded him with an expressionless look and everyone else in the room before sighing heavily. "Maybe so," he agreed. "But one thing's for certain: we're losing the peace, which means a war could be our only hope."


	14. Retaking Terok Nor

**Doing Star Trek has been challenging but so far worth it. :D**

Chapter Thirteen

Retaking Terok Nor

Mia was in her personal quarters, so she was able to hear the conversation about the building of the minefield to prevent anymore Dominion cargo ships from entering the quadrant again. She agreed with Odo; this was a bad move, but peace didn't last forever. She stretched her telepathic senses as far as a wild dog's would go when detecting danger and prey amidst.

 _What about pulse mines?_ O'Brien suggested.

 _No, they'll be exhausted before use, and the Dominion will wait and pick them off one by one._ That was Jadzia Dax.

 _How about cloaking them so the Dominion doesn't see or detect them?_

 _No, because cloaking doesn't always work against the Dominion. And that will weaken the mines._

 _They may be cloaked, but I'm thinking of making them smaller,_ Miles suggested instead.

Jadzia disagreed. _Mines that small don't have a lot of power. It would take dozens to disable a warship. We'd run out of mines before they run out of ships. Rom, are you listening?_

Poor Rom was so focused despite planning a hectic wedding, and overwhelmed with excitement that Benjamin Sisko was performing the ceremony. But the wedding wasn't for another two weeks, so in the meantime, work came first. _Oh, wait a moment, here it is: self-replication. If they are made small enough, they would require more than enough power and constant replacements._

Both O'Brien and Dax were in agreement; they were finally onto something. _There will have to be at least twenty detonating each ship, but we have to lay them out before we activate any of them. We can't afford any premature detonation, now can we?_

Mia tuned out the plan and instead focused on her father's conversation with Starfleet, telling them Kira and Worf were needed elsewhere instead of constructing the minefield, instead to prepare for an attack from the Dominion. Disappointingly enough, no reinforcements from Starfleet. She had to agree with Nerys; what was Starfleet thinking?! What could be more important than defending this station? But this was out of her hands.

~o~

Kira Nerys was on fire in every part of her body. How could Starfleet listen but choose not to help them?! But the orders were clear; she and Worf were to do as they were told in deploying the minefield and preparing for battle.

When she made way into the security office, she halted in her tracks when she made eye contact with _Odo._ "You wanted to see me, Constable?" she asked, keeping up the professional shell.

"Major, I'd like your permission to terminate all outgoing subspace communications."

"You really think that is necessary?" she asked, wondering if this was the only reason he called her here. Cutting off all communication meant no outside contact from anyone. But Odo said this was no time for security leaks, like there had been when the Cardassians evacuated from the station, then called Terok Nor. He even prepared a number of false messages so there was no traffic in the subspace messaging or any unwanted communications. She nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

She turned to leave before he called her back.

"Major. There is something you want to know." He was walking around the desk for her. "I've been thinking about...asking you out to dinner."

She was surprised that he finally decided to ask her. She'd been wanting to do dinner with him, too, at Mia's suggestion, the little matchmaker who also helped set Jadzia and Worf up. Two different species who somehow managed to work together. "I've been expecting something like that," Nerys said carefully, hands behind her back.

"I've noticed," Odo said, "but you've looked a little uncomfortable lately."

"And you've looked a little uncomfortable yourself."

"Which is why I'm letting you know I'm not going to do it. No dinner, no flowers, no attempts to change our relationship. Until the current crisis is cleared, we need our minds to be cleared of any unnecessary distractions."

Yes, that was for the best. Things had been too strange for them since last month, and with the Dominion coming along, it was better to put personal feelings on hold until this blew over. "That's probably a good idea." All they needed to do now was deploy the minefield, establish station security, and prepare themselves for a possible invasion.

Odo hummed in agreement. "Well, I don't know about you, but I feel even more comfortable already."

~o~

Dukat was in yet another foul mood, however maintained his temper when he informed Weyoun of the Federation's decision to set up a minefield and prevent any of their convoy ships from entering the wormhole. The next wasn't for a few more days, but word had reached the Dominion's ears of this bold but otherwise fatal mistake. Sisko and his crew were asking for a death wish. And the Female Founder herself was less than pleased.

"Weyoun, you are to speak with the captain about this grave error he is making," she said. "Issue an ultimatum and restore security, but if he refuses, inform him that he and his crew will be removed and so have his station taken out of their hands."

He smiled to her and half to himself. Deep Space 9 - Terok Nor - was originally under Cardassian hands for fifty-something years before abandoning it as they left it until the Bajoran government granted permission to Starfleet to reconstruct and the new commander - Sisko, no other - to command. It wasn't clear why Cardassia left the station behind, but Weyoun always suspected they planned to reclaim it in the event of time. His veins thrummed with excitement at the possibility of having the Federation crew driven out of their sanctuary - but what would become of Mia, who was carrying their child? "I will," he answered, bowing his head forward and spreading his arms in the gesture of reverence. "I live to serve the Founders."

He boarded the ship and waited aboard the bridge the whole time until they finally exited the wormhole. The _Defiant_ \- Sisko's beloved ship - was beginning to deploy, but none went off. Well, how could they and risk premature damage? Weyoun sneered and ordered communication a meeting in the captain's office, with the Jem'Hadar flanking him once more. Moments later, Benjamin Sisko strode into the room, but Mia was nowhere with him this time. He was disappointed, but he would not allow it to show.

"What can I do for you, Weyoun?"

"Captain Sisko, I'll make this brief." He dropped the pleasantries he always used with the captain every time they met altogether. Now was no time for politeness. He let the bond he and Mia shared open so she could hear and see the conversation between him and her father. "We know all about the minefield," he said icily, "assuming you knew we would find out sooner or later. The fact you and your people deliberately order a minefield to block anymore Jem'Hadar convoy ships to enter your territory has proven to be gallant but absurd. As I see it, you have two choices: either you remove the mines...or we will take this station from you and remove them ourselves."

Sisko's emotionless face remained unchanged. "I appreciate your directness," he said, his voice slashing like a _kar'takin_ , "now let me be direct with you: the mines _stay_. I will NOT allow anymore Dominion reinforcements through the wormhole."

Weyoun fumed and hissed angrily like a serpent. " _You_...will not _ALLOW?_ "

"You heard me," Sisko growled back.

His blood felt like it was on its highest point; he sensed Mia's distress but would not settle down just for her. Her father was making a grave mistake with not surrendering what did not truly belong to him and his band of self-righteous comrades. "I can see how that might be your first reaction." Weyoun allowed himself to slip back into his mask of sincerity and reason, smiling softly. "But, you and I are reasonable men, and surely reasonable men can come to a mutual acceptable compromise."

Now the captain was beginning to soften. "I didn't think the Dominion believed in compromise."

"Oh, it saddens me to see how deeply you misunderstand us. All the Dominion wants is to peacefully coexist with its neighbors."

"Then why the continual military buildup?" Sisko demanded. "Why the convoys, ships and troops from the Gamma Quadrant?"

He might lie other times, manipulate, but this time he was honest. "It is the Cardassians." He brushed past the father of the mother of his child. "Don't get me wrong, I'm pleased to call them allies, but as you know, they've just been through a terrible war with the Klingons. I'm afraid it's left them somewhat...jittery. So, they're understandably concerned about ensuring the sovereignty of their borders since they're now members of the Dominion. Their concerns have become _our_ concerns."

"I would have thought you had more than enough ships, then, to defend Cardassia."

"You may think that and _I_ may think that," Weyoun stated, not surrendering to let him know he was right in this case, "but as you know how the Cardassians are now, as I've stated previously." He smiled at the look of acquiesce on Sisko's face. "You see our dilemma." The captain said nothing, instead crossing over to look out the window to the black of space and stars. An idea popped into Weyoun's mind. "What if we agreed to limit our convoys to cargo ships, construction units, and civilian aid? Things that will help get their economy back on its feet. Did you know, when we arrived, that children were starving on Cardassia Prime? It was heartbreaking."

 _Was it really?_ Mia spoke to him through their bond. _You might be happy with having a baby with me, but would you really feel that way for OTHER children in the universe?_

It pained him to hear her say that; how could she think that? Of course he felt for those children, but if his gods ordered him to order their deaths, he had no choice. This wasn't his decision to disobey, if she'd forgotten that. And her father now looked shocked at the unexpected revelation. "I had no idea things were that bad."

"The Cardassians are very proud people," Weyoun answered. "They don't want to admit to the outside as to how dire the situation really is. So...are we agreed? You remove the mines, and we restrict our convoys to medical and economic assistance."

"Sounds reasonable." Sisko nodded. "But I'd have to discuss it with Starfleet first."

Weyoun smirked. "I'm sure they will do whatever Benjamin Sisko recommends. For my part, I'll personally speak to the Founders to secure our end of the bargain."

Benjamin turned his whole body to face him full front. "What about... _Gul Dukat_?"

Weyoun chuckled. "Why, he'll be furious. At first. But we've developed an honest working relationship, and I'm sure he will be able to see the wisdom of our decision. You won't be disappointed."

Then his mind turned to his beloved. _I'm sorry, my love,_ he sent to her. _But I believe we will be together again soon._

~o~

Mia's heart was heavy with fear because the Dominion were sure to attack in the morning. Weyoun was trying to lure her father and everyone else into a false sense of security; it didn't work on Benjamin at all, and didn't work on Mia now. And for that, Benjamin was telling Martok and the others not to trust the sly Vorta and to keep a lookout for any Dominion ships coming along. Next, he would order Kira to speak to the Bajoran council about finally signing the non-aggression pact with the Dominion for their sakes. "If this is not done," Benjamin said, "five years of all we've come to is finished."

Mia sighed and worked as she usually did, trying to put her mind on anything else but this, such as Rom and Leeta's wedding coming up soon, and she was the bridesmaid after all. But since how could she think positive with so much negativity happening? The minefield needed more time, but time wasn't on their side. Dax promised Benjamin they would do the best they could before the Dominion/Cardassian ships arrived.

The wedding came and went on the same day, Rom and Leeta in their official married life. But their bliss didn't last long, since the pact was finally signed and all Bajorans on Deep Space 9 were to return to their planet to save their own skins, at the order of First Minister Shakaar - Nerys' former flame. Kira, however, chose to stay behind and send Ziyal, Gul Dukat's daughter, to Bajor to go to school. This mean Leeta had to leave Rom, her new husband, behind; heartbreaking as it was, but it was necessary. Which was what Mia planned to do when the time came, remain on the station.

She was with Benjamin when he ordered his special Program Sisko 197 to be activated and do its damage to the systems of the station. In case there was ever the chance of them getting everything they worked so hard for back, the Dominion could NEVER see into anything left behind if nothing was left unharmed. Then Nog called and said General Martok was calling from the Cardassian border. "On screen," he ordered.

Martok's face was in front of them all. _"Captain, we've just detected a large Dominion force on the Cardassian border. They're heading your way. They should be there -"_

The screen was turning into static; the signal was being jammed. And then the screen changed to static before showing three faces Benjamin didn't want to see at all, but she wanted to see _one_ in particular.

 _"Captain Sisko,"_ Gul Dukat said smugly, _"oh, and Miss Sisko. I wasn't expecting to see you here,"_ he said with surprise upon seeing her.

"Don't say a word," her father warned when he blocked her with his arm in front of her, then they both looked back when Dukat continued speaking.

 _"The day has finally come. But we can end this quickly if you both agree to surrender and avoid unnecessary bloodshed."_ Then his eyes switched over to Mia in particular. _"And there is one other thing I would love in exchange, too."_

"And what is that?" Benjamin spat.

 _"You can give me your daughter as a present, an exchange for me to call off the fleet."_

She sucked in her breath; she should have expected that, and it sickened her. To even imagine herself as the Gul's slave girl. Sisko was shaking his head brusquely. "No, Dukat, I refuse to hand my daughter over into your scaly hands." He pulled her over to his side and held her close like she was really his daughter by blood. It made Dukat laugh. Damar, his loyal military commander, said nothing and only watched with silent worry that his master was losing his mind for sure this time.

Weyoun, however, since he was behind the Gul, glared with the savagery of a black panther. His rage was uncontrollable as a hurricane on Earth. _You treacherous, loathsome snake!_ he mentally spat, from Mia's readings. _You went to the Founder behind my back and spoke to her. She doesn't care as long as we capture the station, lets you have your prize._

"I'm not a prize to win, Dukat," Mia snarled, pulling from her father's hold. "You can have anything else we have, something else of value, but me? I'm nothing to you."

He scoffed, his smile fading. _"You're exactly what I need, my dear. The prize to my eyes, which I wanted the moment I laid them on you. A man has needs, after all, besides power. We are coming anyways, Captain, since I knew from the beginning you would refuse. Not one of your crew members or any residents remaining are safe now."_ The screen went blank.

Mia hated to say this, but this was her chance now. "Dad, I should give in and do what he says."

He rounded on her. "Absolutely not! I won't let that Cardassian contamination take you from us. What if he finds out about the baby and who knows what he will do to you?" He took her by the shoulders and shook her gently. "Mia, this is too dangerous, as much as I trust you with this."

She put her hands over his. "I can take care of us both, Dad. I promise. I'll stay by with Odo and Kira, and whoever else to watch over the station. We'll work together to survive, and I know we'll reunite and get the station back someday. You know we will; when did you ever stop believing? The Prophets will tell you so, remember?"

His face softened. "Yes, you're right." He nodded slowly, but he still had his doubts. He pulled her back into his arms again. "Amelia, I love you like you're my real daughter. I would be devastated if something happens to you and my grandchild right there." He pulled back and put his hand on her rounded abdomen. "But it would drive me to fight with every ounce of strength I have to defeat the Dominion once and for all." Mia smiled at him; this was why she looked up to him like a father so much. Benjamin then looked around himself and shook his head.

"When I first took command of this post five years ago, all I wanted was to be somewhere else, anywhere but here," he said softly, as though in a dream. "But now, five years later, this station has become my home - OUR home," he added, looking down at her; he was speaking of Jake, too. "And the crew has become our family. Leaving this place, leaving you and any others, is one of the hardest things I've ever had to do."

Mia shook her head. "The war isn't over, and we both know that. We'll be doing our best to keep the Dominion occupied, and our sacrifices make everything possible."

He drew her back to him again, running his hands through her long silken hair. "Yes, but no victory can make this moment any easier for me, and I promise, I will not rest until I stand with you again, here in this place. Where I belong. Where we ALL belong." He spoke of Odo, Nerys, Julian, Miles and the others. They were all a family despite any differences happening every now and then, but that was a common factor of a family. They would be back together someday.

Speaking of family, Mia brought her hand back to where her child was resting but would soon stir and sense danger approaching. Her and _Weyoun's_ child.

~o~

Weyoun surveyed the fleet through the window with a small smile on his face; the main reason he was excited for the station to be taken back into the hands of the Cardassians was mostly because he wanted to see Mia again - but then she would be in the hands of Dukat. His body shook with rage; if he had it in him, he would have struck a bolt and killed the Gul. His voice shook him more. "I have been waiting for this moment for five years," he heard him say with uncontrolled passion to Damar, who could barely contain himself, either, the inexperienced buffoon he was.

"First we reclaim Terok Nor and then onto Bajor." Weyoun whirled around and fixed him with hostile eyes.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," he warned. "Or must I remind you that the Dominion just signed a non-aggression pact with Bajor?"

Damar shifted and lowered his gaze briefly before hooking him square. "The Dominion might have, but I never did." He was Dukat's pet who followed the orders when his master told him to, even ordered the deaths of so many when Dukat commanded. Weyoun sometimes thought about the...women and children now, now that he thought of his beloved Mia and their unborn child, both of whom he was worried for now.

"The Dominion will honor its treaty," he stated coldly to Damar, "and as a member of the Dominion, _you_ will honor it as well." He looked then to Dukat, ignoring the other Cardassian's promise to follow where the Dominion led, but he doubted that yet tried not to dwell too much. "And what about Amelia Sisko? Was it necessary to consider taking her into your bed?" It sickened him to even say that out loud, even to the man himself.

Dukat glared at him. "I don't see how that is your concern."

"It's my concern when you went to the Founder without consulting me first. Miss Sisko is hardly of concern to your reptilian needs," Weyoun sneered, getting another step forward and a monstrous glower from Dukat.

"See here, my friend, the decision was made by the Founder; her side of the agreement was that Captain Sisko's daughter be made an example of the enemy himself and anyone else who would dare cross us."

"Sir, the weapons are in range."

Dukat turned from Weyoun and smiled. "Well, then, fire at range. I've waited long enough to delay this anymore." He turned back to Weyoun and narrowed his eyes. "Be careful, Ambassador. No one is allowed to touch the girl but me. Since you might be in favor of the Founder herself, you are nowhere near my position, and you will do well to remember that."

 **Yup, Weyoun's met his match over the heart of Mia, the mother of his child. Things are getting hotter now, as I always say. ;D Plus, what Benjamin says as he did in the episode itself was so heartbreaking that it nearly repeats itself in the next chapter when everyone in the crew says good-bye for now.**


	15. All Hope Not Lost

Chapter Fourteen

All Hope Not Lost

Several Dominion ships were destroyed, but not enough to protect Deep Space 9's shields, which were penetrated within a matter of time. Mia closed her eyes as she thought this was it.

The minefield might have been deployed, but the Dominion was still winning this battle. That was why her father ordered everyone to evacuate just now, say good-bye to their makeshift family that they'd become. Mia never was one to physically cry except on the inside, but for the first time, she allowed herself to shed some tears in front of them without bawling like an infant, like the one who would leave her body in eight more months. She turned then and held onto her father tightly; his arms wrapped around her waist in return as he reprimanded her softly. "Hey, now, don't cry now. You didn't then and you won't now. You're strong, Mia, so continue to be so for the baby and all of us." He let her go and turned her around to face the others. "Everyone who's staying, she's going to lead the way in my absence." Mia saw Jadzia smile and nod, before she turned and said good-bye to Worf, whom she promised would marry as soon as all of this was over. He was being reassigned to Martok's ship, and it would be some time before they, too, reunited.

"I was telling this to my daughter, and now I'll tell you now," Benjamin told them all. "We've lost this station which has become our home, which makes us all a family, but this will enable the Starfleet and Klingon task force to cross into Cardassia and destroy the Dominion shipyards on Torros III. Someday soon we will regroup and return to restore where we belong. The Dominion will pay someday for everything." Once he was finished, he turned down to give Mia a kiss on her forehead. The last one she would get from him for awhile. He would now be joining Garak aboard the _Defiant_ ; Garak, their Cardassian ally who once fought alongside Dukat before the latter betrayed him. Today, he'd said, he would regret with everyone for not killing his friend turned foe when he had the chance.

"I love you, Dad," Mia croaked when she watched as he left their sight.

~o~

Mia had been loose and about when she found Kira and Odo as they both returned to the operations center. She greeted them both and she threw her arms around them both with choking sobs; she was unsure of what she was saying to them other than her father was gone, and they were going to lose everything they worked so hard to build. Nerys sympathized for the girl and patted her back tenderly. "There now, that's enough. All hope's not lost; I never go down without a fight, and you didn't either. I understand exactly how you're feeling," she said gently. "Try to think of the pregnancy hormones interfering with the strong woman you are."

Mia looked up at her then, showing redness in the whites of both eyes. "Dukat asked for me as a gift in exchange, so that's why I stayed behind with you. And to help protect the station."

Nerys flared internally and let her go to look her in the eyes. "Exactly what we will do, but in the meantime, we do our best to keep Dukat and the rest occupied." Her lip curled when the image conjured up of this poor woman in his scaly clutches now, expecially when there was a BABY. "Dukat coming here makes me ill. He shouldn't be allowed near you on my watch."

"Nerys." Odo spoke from behind her. "I believe we can resolve this as soon as Program Sisko 197 is activated," he reminded her.

She regarded him for a brief moment before nodding. "Of course." She marched over to the console then. "This is Major Kira," she spoke. "The _Defiant_ and _Rotarran_ have departed, and you are welcomed to Deep Space 9." Her "invitation" was forced and sounded like she was getting to be as sick as Mia was now; her baby was stirring with her emotions. She said nothing, sticking close beside Odo, his arm snaking around her waist to pull her in, and watched as Kira activated Program Sisko 197, which triggered all the systems into an overload for no use to the enemy.

If Dukat wanted it back, he could have it.

The whole station shook with the electrical death; she laughed humorlessly at the "joke". Mia's stomach lurched with it, and she felt like she was going to be sick again. "Mia!" Odo helped her sit down and knelt beside her. "Are you all right?"

She nodded, though the nausea was there. "I've been better."

Nerys turned from the console and frowned. "Better won't be it when Dukat finds out about the baby," she reminded her. Her soft dark eyes traveled down to where Mia held her abdomen underneath. "How is it?"

"It will be fine," Mia answered. "You ever felt this way with Kirayoshi?" Nerys stiffened at the subject brought up.

"I did," she answered, voice soft and distant. "To give life only to give it away to someone else...it was difficult, but I had to live with it." She shook her head and sat down beside Mia, looking ahead and avoiding her and Odo altogether. "Remember I said I never wanted a baby before him?"

"I wasn't ready either," Mia admitted, "but I know I want this child."

Kira looked at her then, and then at her still-flat stomach. "Even during these circumstances?"

"Even during these circumstances," Mia answered.

"Does this mean you're ready to say who the father is now?"

She sucked in a breath. Mia was afraid, and Kira was more than suspicious that it was someone who wasn't random. "Yeah." She took a deep breath. "The father of my child is..." She trailed off, the tightness in her throat loud and clear.

"Yes?" Kira pressed gently.

"Weyoun."

The silence that followed was tense before Nerys' response was obvious and the best she could manage. She felt like she was going to black out like the whole system of the station. "The f-father is _Weyoun_ , the Dominion Vorta diplomat?!" she sputtered, backing away an inch, making Mia move into Odo for protection. Nerys apologized quickly, though she was still shocked and disgusted. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to, but really! You were with the enemy's representative! When did this happen?"

"A couple months ago, while he and Dukat were here regarding Ghemor," Mia answered honestly.

"Sleeping with the enemy is -"

"Treason, I know. But I'm not going to lie: I'm in love with him. He knows about the child, and he's changing if not his ways with the Dominion."

Kira reached over and took her hand back into hers, the gesture itself forcing her to look up at the older woman. Kira was not smiling; her whole face was definitely scolding and overprotective. She wanted nothing more than to be happy, but how could she at a time like this? "Mia, do you realize what happened? You're having the child of a servant of the enemy, and is that the real reason you chose to stay with us? To see if he would even accept the child?"

"Nerys, please, you're overwhelming her," Odo said. He looked down at Mia. "Now Dukat will be here soon, and he's expecting you in his bed. What will you do once he finds out about the child?"

~o~

Mia knew keeping her pregnancy a secret would be exposed anyways, but that did not mean she would not do everything she could to protect her unborn child. Nerys wasn't happy that she was impregnated by the "enemy", but she still supported her. It was MIA who made the choice to be with Weyoun, who fell in love with him. But there was no telling what Dukat would do to her now.

She decided to head to Quark's bar just to be away from the stress. He and the rest of the staff were working to remove all traces of what had been her comfort zone of the station she called her home. "Ah, Mia! Goodness you're here," Quark said from behind the bar itself. "It's a good thing that you're here, still as my favorite dabo girl. Most of everyone else gone; it won't be the same. You know how much I hate change." Mia sighed and sat down at the counter, watching the group work to pop out the kanar and yamok sauce which all Cardassians favored. Damn Dukat, damn Damar.

"My brother is right," the voice of Rom said, coming up to be beside her. Mia jumped slightly and laughed, turning around to face him. "I'm staying, too, back to my old job as Assistant Manager of Policy and Clientele. Which also means I'll be spying on those Cardassian snakes for Starfleet."

"But we both know you're bound to mess up and get into trouble," Mia told him, joking slightly, and reaching over to pinch his ear and make him laugh and draw back.

"Count me in, too, big sis."

"Jake!" Mia whirled around and saw him sitting not too far away. "Let me guess, reporting on what's going on here from now on."

He grinned. "Definitely. They won't hurt me because I'm the son of the Emissary of the Prophets, just like Dukat won't hurt you because..."

"Because Mia is now the Gul's mistress. And the mother of the Vorta's offspring." Odo stood in the doorway of the bar with Kira beside him, both looking grim. "Quark," he said tersely to the Ferengi, then softened his face and voice to her, "and Mia, they've arrived. We have to meet them."

~o~

Alas, victory claimed. Weyoun could smell it in the air as he boarded Deep Space 9 - now once again called Terok Nor - with Dukat and Damar. The Jem'Hadar escorts and Dominion personnel trailed behind. Smoke clouded the air, detailing remnants of battle and destruction of certain key points of the station. Weyoun smiled when he thought of the Dominion in control once more of Terok Nor, but for him personally, this came with a price.

Mia had stayed behind, but that meant she was now Dukat's courtesan, and this meant he was forbidden to touch what was now the Gul's. Weyoun feared the Cardassian losing it and killing their child while it slumbered in her womb, or if not him, then he'd have Damar do it for him. He wouldn't let her get hurt, ever.

She was there, taking his breath away. It had been so long since he'd seen her physically, and she was positively radiant...except her lively energy was replaced by a wariness and fear of the unknown not for herself, but for him and their child, and everyone else she loved. She wasn't alone, either; with her were the bartender Quark, Major Kira, and of course - "Founder," Weyoun said pleasantly, bowing his head forward. "We're honored by your decision to remain with us."

"I'm not here as a Founder," the constable stated coldly. "I am here as the station's security chief."

Weyoun nodded. "Whatever you say. Nevertheless, having a...god walk amongst us is most gratifying."

"I agree." Dukat stepped forward between Odo and Kira. "You, me, the major...together again. And this lovely one as my comfort woman." He reached up to touch her chin, but she flinched and drew her face back. Weyoun bit back his tongue. "This should be interesting."

 _Over my dead body,_ Mia's eyes said to him silently, mentally to Weyoun through their shared bond. _Weyoun, I won't let him touch me. Not if I have anything to say about it. He doesn't know what I really possess._

 _That he doesn't,_ Weyoun responded as he followed the Gul away from the small group. They reached the station commander's office - now Dukat's once again - seeing the area in a mess that nothing of importance could be found. It appeared Sisko removed all that meant most to him. "I assume Captain Sisko removed or destroyed everything of value?" Weyoun mused as he joined Dukat at the captain's desk.

Dukat held up something he picked up. Weyoun recognized it as a baseball, an item used in sport which Mia explained was her father and brother's favorite to play. "Not everything. This is a message from him, it seems."

Weyoun frowned. "I don't understand." The link was opened to Mia, so her response matched Dukat's: _He's letting you know...he'll be back._

 **Now that Mia is Gul Dukat's mistress, he's bound to find out she's with child, so hold on tight for his response.**


	16. Sizzling Samba

**This chapter includes an incredible dream sequence which explores Kurill Prime, the supposed home of the Vorta, was never fully explored and therefore has no picture I could find - or any explicit details for that matter - but here's the best I came up with, and I wanted it to capture the beauty it had in the compelling "Immortal Beloved". More to say, but the title should give a better hint without spoilers. ;)**

Chapter Fifteen

Sizzling Samba

Dukat needed him so late in the night that he wanted more and more to sneak into Mia's quarters to be with her, at least reconnect with her and get to know their unborn child. Weyoun's personal quarters were given to him, once being Dr. Bashir's, which he knew Dukat or Damar wouldn't dare come in as they pleased. For the first time in awhile, he would sleep well.

But he tried and found that he couldn't. Weyoun couldn't stop thinking about Mia in her own room, alone. He probed her mind gently and sensed that she was still awake. _You want me to come over there?_

 _Just don't let anyone see you,_ she answered.

He smiled and brushed his hand through her waves tenderly. _I'll use the other way instead of walking my way over there. Spare anyone seeing me going to you._

He had abandoned his tunic, barefoot and wearing only his trousers. He knew Mia would find him irresistible, but would she be in the mood for this? He could deal with it, but it had been so long, and he missed her...

The first time Weyoun practiced teleportation without the need of technology, his brain felt like it was caught in a vice and twisted into another unseen shape, but more practice and he didn't mind the pain anymore. He'd dealt with far worse. He closed his eyes and simply thought of Mia in her bed, lying awake and waiting for him, opening his eyes and seeing lavender to match his eye color; this was his ray guide, which brought him right to her. And there she was, laying in bed as he imagined. Shoulders bared, the covers drawn up to cover her chest, it made him twitch in his pants when he assumed she was naked under there, but he tried not to think of her that way too fast.

"I see you mastered the backup transportation," she noted with a soft smile. The smile which he saw in his dreams and in their bond. His heart fluttered. Weyoun smiled back and walked so he could sit on her side of the bed, on the edge, halfway turning and facing her.

"How are you?" His eyes adverted down to where the barely not-yet-showing bulge was before his weak eyes. But weak as they were to other things, Mia's beauty hadn't changed a bit, and neither had her spirit.

"We're both fine." He swallowed as she pushed down the covers, showing him her still-flat stomach as well as her bare breasts, proving his suspicions. He still couldn't believe that they were going to be parents, but once the child was born, he doubted the female Changeling would allow him to be in its life. She would either order it killed - which he would NEVER allow on his life - or perhaps given away to another family, which wasn't fair to Weyoun since he and Mia were the true parents. He'd managed to find some intel on raising a child and discovering so much responsibilities and sacrifices to be made. All his life, Weyoun had made sacrifices, so it was nothing new to him. He'd already done the same to Mia and would continue to do so.

"I want to be in your lives," he told her softly. "But I won't allow Dukat, the Founder, or anyone else hurt you on my life. I have yet to learn more on this subject, but the both of you matter the most to me than anything else."

She shifted away, still on her back. "What about your gods that you serve?"

Her evident disgust on them hadn't changed, either. "Mia, please," he implored. "I have a duty and a treaty to honor. The pacts were signed for no aggression..."

"But not everyone will agree," she reminded him. "Someone is bound to act against you and your people and allies. Always has been that way, so you can't expect everyone to side with the Dominion."

Weyoun sighed and turned his back to her, taking a few deep breaths to try and calm himself down. "My love, I did not come here to discuss the politics tonight. After so many months of separation, the last thing I needed was another lecture on the Dominion's 'wrongdoings'." He heard the covers ruffle as she sat all the way up. Her eyes burned into his back.

"They make me sick," she snarled. "I only stayed behind so I could be with you. I want our child to have her father in her life, and I wish you could find it in you to come away with us so you have a better life than you do now with these loathsome monsters and murderers -"

Weyoun whirled around then and glared at her with the power of a devil. "Amelia Sisko, I warn you that my patience is wearing thin. You're asking me to defect against the Founders, which I will not. Even if I were to do such a thing, I'd activate the termination implant which will very much take me away from you and I would be cloned again, or perhaps I would be personally executed before your eyes. Or worse: you'll be taken from me, and I will never see you again. Do you really want us parted for the last time?"

"I'm not asking you to defect; that's your choice," she answered calmly, but he detected her crumbling. "I just want the man I love to see the truth."

" _Truth_?" He shook his head and laughed, turning the back of his head to her once again. "What truth?"

"That you're living a lie and serving merciless beings who take it out on others just because of some silly sense of mistrust. See that he deserves a long, happy life of peace with me and the baby, instead of constantly being taken from us until the labs might be destroyed unexpectedly - or his line terminated completely - and who knows, no more Weyoun in existence." Her words were tight and forced along with her voice. They stung, and it broke his heart. "Don't you want to be free from them, live with us and in a safer position among my family and crew, like I asked you so long ago?"

His whole body went stiff when her hand touched his back and ran down the middle, stopping just above his lower back. "Mia..."

"Stop objecting. You know deep down that you want peace. This fighting is all for beings who facilitate violence and dictatorship. Would you rather be a voice for violence or peace?"

He didn't want to hear this anymore tonight; he felt like he should just leave, take the rest of the night to himself. But he was here and he wanted to end this conversation right now. "Of course I'm the voice for peace. I want this war which has started to end as soon as possible."

"And your side to win, so you can continue to have innocent people condemned -"

"Mia, enough." He turned around and took both her hands into his. She struggled, but he held onto her. "I do not want to talk about this anymore. I want to just be with you, so please, don't fight me anymore tonight."

He looked behind her and saw that she had been reading a book. How could he not notice this before? "Now what is that?" he questioned, sure he could read the words _Kama Sutra_ ; what in the name of the gods was that?

Mia forgot she was fighting with him and looked away from him, to the book, her cheeks flushing. "The _Kama Sutra._ A very ancient textbook on sexuality. So many different positions, different ways to do them," she answered nervously. "Like the Risian _jamaharon._ "

Weyoun chuckled in amusement that his lover would be reading up on the subject between two people who cared about each other; it made him wonder what new position they could try now that she was two weeks pregnant and this was their first night back together. "How about you show me how much you missed me, without hurting our child in any way?"

She laid on her back and spread her thighs, the sight adding too much to his growing hardness. Weyoun let his tongue snake out and lick his lips at the sight of her breasts flat against her chest, her stomach, a small but plump valley between her spread, bent legs, and her weeping entrance hidden by dark curls. He stood from the bed and dropped his pants before getting back in and joining her after two long weeks.

~o~

 _The smell of sand, ocean, and rock filled her senses to the point of slowly opening her eyes. She didn't want to open her eyes because she felt so relaxed as though she'd just taken a warm bath; she forced herself to slowly open one eye. Her vision was blurred, but the colors defined showed she was lying on the linen-soft, silvery sandy shore before a vast blue ocean. Reaching up, she rubbed her eyes until her vision was clear...and saw that she was on a planet she had never seen before, facing the sea and the sun setting over the horizon. There was no way this could be Bajoran._

 _The sky was so beautiful and opalescent, starting from the bottom with soft pearl-pink and pale lavender - Weyoun's eyes - and onward to the turquoise of the water by day, turning into royal and indigo blue, reflecting off the waters. Mia slowly stood, noticing that she was still wearing nothing at all, her hair rippling in the soft breeze and making the goosebumps rise. Looking back down further, she saw Weyoun lying there on his side, also bare. She knew they were both dreaming, because how could it be real this way? Their bond caused them to have the same dreams once in awhile, linking them in the same events of the dream. It was good to have him here with her in this one. "Weyoun?" She knelt down and gently nudged him awake, placing her hand on his arm and squeezing the soft muscles. He stirred and murmured something she didn't understand. His eyelids fluttered to show the soft lilac irises and looked up at her, then around, frowning and sitting up._

 _"Mia? We're on...Kurill Prime." He looked down at himself and smirked in amusement. "Hm, how about this?"_

 _"Our reunion was kind enough to bring us back like this," Mia answered, sitting back down beside him. He chuckled and nodded. Looking around more, she saw the surroundings were a blend of tropical jungle with the serenity of a zen garden. Exquisited gracefully curving trees crawling with vines ranging from rippleberry vines - the fruits she remembered Vorta known to nourish along with kava nuts, which she saw the plants of - to colorful flowers of all sorts; the ground a soothing contrast to the over-the-top forestry of lush emerald grass interrupted by smooth, crystalline, silvery-toned sand and some smooth black stones you would find in a spa on Earth as well as previously mentioned garden. Kurill Prime, the most beautiful system she'd seen in five years. It was the home of the Vorta, but never officially proven to Starfleet. It seemed seeing was believing, but she had yet to see more Vorta around - if there were any._

 _"How would you love to live here?" she asked, sitting back down with him. "Away from all the troubles of war, in peace like we both want. This is perfect."_

 _He gave her a little smile which faded as he looked around his own home planet. "I don't know how to judge this, but I would love nothing better than to live here once the fighting is over..."_

~o~

He had to be transported back into his room early in the morning before Dukat called for him. He hated being away from her - especially after the exquisite dream of being back on Kurill Prime, but only because Mia was with him - and only for Dukat to inform him that they had ordered Quark to have a party prepared in his bar at the end of the day. "The Cardassians claimed victory over Terok Nor," he said proudly, sharing some kanar with Damar, which Weyoun sneered at and refused to accept. "At least have the first day to be amusing and then carry on with business the next."

The only amusement Weyoun looked forward to was his beloved dancing for all to see. If only _Dukat_ hadn't issued it. He stretched his bond thread to hear what she was saying to Quark at the present.

 _I always enjoy these things, Quark, but to do it for that lizard Dukat!_ she spat. _It's more than I can bear._

The Ferengi shook his head from what Weyoun detected. _Ah, my dear, as you have known since I hired you, I'm a Ferengi, so it's our nature to expect these things of women. As for any other man of other species as well as your own, they love these things from time to time, too. In our culture, a woman wearing little to none shows we're in control._

She snorted. _I'll show him I'm in control, and he'll never know what will hit him. He tries to hurt me and my child, he'll pay for it._

 _I still can't believe you have to go through with this._ That was Jake, her younger brother whom Weyoun remembered doing brief "business" with. _My sister!_ he complained to Quark, who ignored him and instead turned his attention to whatever it was Mia was wearing now.

 _Dear, you look ravishing._

 _I'll definitely take it as a compliment. I know Weyoun will love this, too._ Ah, so she finally told them, but he wondered if she was making a mistake telling the obnoxious Ferengi, whom Odo called the thorn in his side.

 _You know, Mia, I'm still trying to process Weyoun being the father,_ Jake spoke. _I met him only once, and he seems like a nice guy, but he's still working for the enemy._ Weyoun wasn't going to lie that he did indeed like Captain Sisko's son so much, and the fact that Jake respected this was his sister's choice to make. _But most of all, sis, please be careful with Dukat. I guarantee he won't do anything pretty to you._

Quark laughed. _Oh, boy, don't worry about her. Your sister has always taken care of herself. You go get them, dear Mia,_ he told her. _Make them weak at the knees._

And so Weyoun was literally weak at the knees when she finally showed up, in the middle of the room when the tables were cleared out of the way just for her. Mia wore an exquisite, iridescent tanzanite-set costume piece which bared her arms as well as her legs but still covered up all her sensitive parts. The costume wasn't exactly his taste, but Mia herself was beautiful.

And then he heard her sing as she approached the center of the floor. The song itself didn't rapture him, but she did:

 _Burning sands winds of desire_

 _Mirrored the waves that reflect_

 _a burning fire within my heart_

 _Un-watered, feeding the flame_

 _Welcoming you to my Harem_

Weyoun sat beside Dukat when her attention landed on them both - it was HIM and Weyoun knew it better than anyone - but she did her best to make sure nobody knew it was him, and make sure Dukat didn't notice either, but assume she had her attention on him, lead him on a false sense that she'd been playing hard to get all along. Smart woman. Her hands swirled in the air with each word and rhythm, hips gently swaying side to side, round in little circles.

 _Sing for me a song of life's visage_

 _Sing for me a tune of love's mirage_

 _In his eyes sleep untold_

 _Whispers that echo the days of all my soul_

 _I hold your Eastern promise close to my heart_

 _Welcoming you to my Harem_

She was incredible, and when she danced in an utterly suggestive but otherwise prim manner, every curve and sashay of her hips to the beat of drums thrumming his veins and going straight to his groin which he had to cross his legs to avoid anyone finding out.

 _Sing for me a song of life's visage_

 _Sing for me a tune of love's mirage_

 _Time is change, times will move us now_

 _No escape, the passing sands of time_

 _I hold your Eastern promise close to my heart_

 _Welcoming you to my Harem_

By the time the tune ended, he watched as she gracefully bowed her head forward before leaving the room as fast as she could, but she didn't leave alone. Vengeance coursed his blood as he watched who got up and followed in the midst of the cheers and applause, as well as turning to each other before the next performance.

 _Dukat_.

~o~

The message was clear from Weyoun through their bond: _Dukat is following you. Be on the lookout._ She could hear her heartbeat pick up its ratings, but she acknowledged the presence too late until she heard his voice.

"Marvelous, Miss Sisko. Or can I call you Mia?" he asked charmingly, but it wasn't the real charm Weyoun used on her that he often used on others to make sure negotiations ran smoothly. Dukat had his way of attempting only to be rebuffed by those who hated him but which he never cared, only smiled to hide his true feelings. Mia knew he was finding her refusals irresistible, and it made her sicker than before.

"Those I love call me Mia. I prefer Amelia from you since you're well aware that I have not the least bit of the strongest feelings for you."

He was still smiling at her. "Amelia it is. I find it even more radiant. I suppose the longer the name, the brighter the light shines, if you take my meaning." He took a step forward, making her back further away at the same time. His gray face fell, feigning hurt feelings. "Oh, come now, don't make this difficult as it is for you to remain here now that your father is gone. Let's not forget you chose to stay here," he reminded her.

"For these people still on the station, regardless if it being renamed back to Terok Nor," Mia said defiantly. _And for the father of my child._ "Either named that way or back to Deep Space 9, it is still my home. As you might break my body but never my spirit, if you must."

His eyes flickered along the lines with something like consideration at that, but instead, his lips twisted into a smug line worse than Weyoun's. "Believe me, I'd love nothing better, because a Cardassian man can take what he wants if he must. But seeing as I respected your father as an adversary, I should respect his daughter's wishes for as long as it needs to be that she is not yet ready to come to my bed. That is if I'm correct."

"Absolutely," Mia answered, relieved for now, but she also knew Dukat's patience had limits. Who knew how long abstinence would last for him before he lost control like a beast and took her against her will. He nodded and dismissed her to rejoin Quark and the others. _Oh, God, Weyoun, I don't know how long I'll take this._

He sighed and bowed his head. _I'm terribly sorry you have to endure this, my Mia._

"Oh, and one more thing." She gasped when, out of the blue, a strong hand of smooth skin and scales grabbed her forearm and turned her back to face him. "Do not try and test me, my dear," Dukat warned, his stormy blue eyes leaning in and bearing into hers. "You know what happens when you tease the hungry animal? They always bite back."

 **The song Mia sings and dances to is "Harem" by Sarah Brightman. :) Exotic, sexy, and Middle Eastern. Take a listen on YouTube.**


	17. Battle of the Wills

**Now time has passed since the Dominion and Cardassia took over the station. Sans spoilers, things get rougher than ever - even the relationship of our lovely couple.**

Chapter Sixteen

Battle of the Wills

Sadly, three months to pass by was hell for Mia, and the Dominion was winning the war, from what she was keeping track of.

The _USS Defiant_ had been on the run all this time, and the slaughtering was gruesome, depicted in grim detail in every report Nerys and Odo - and Jake, of course - had shared with her. Get the latest news regarding the Seventh Fleet on Tyra: fourteen out of one hundred and twelve. The Federation wasn't standing a chance against the Dominion.

And Weyoun had said he wanted both their sides to coexist peacefully. Well, look at this mess.

Right now she was tuning in on the conversation between Weyoun and Kira, the former whose relationship was getting rockier and rockier nowadays. _My dear Major Kira, you have no idea how happy I am to hear you say - Dukat!_ Oh, the reptilian bastard and his lackey, kanar-addicted Damar. On the positive side, Dukat hadn't so much as attempted to force himself onto Mia or force her by his side in any way, which she found odd given the nature of the male side of his race. Perhaps all this time she had been worrying for nothing, that he was only using her for his own image and reputation on the station and not actually interested in her in _that_ way.

But that didn't mean she wasn't aware of how he was constantly watching Kira Nerys, no different than how he always eyed Mia.

 _The major has just given me the most wonderful news,_ Weyoun was gushing. _The Bajorans are returning to the station!_ All Bajoran civilians and personnel had been sent away for their own protection, but now they were coming back? Odo's staff as well as fellow comrades of Nerys' were included, and Rom's wife, Leeta. Nerys had been fighting with every last breath to get Bajoran presence back on Terok Nor - that dreadful but pathetic attempt failing to erase the memory of her father and the rest of the crew's presence here - and now it seemed the chance had come to confront the head of the station himself.

 _We are well aware of that,_ Dukat had responded after exchanging a look with Damar.

 _Then I'm sure you share my delight in knowing that life here is returning to normal._ Life on "Terok Nor" - always would be Deep Space 9 to her - had been dull and meaningless with everything closed down and people suffering hunger and misery on the station, so many hiding away in fear from the Cardassians and the Dominion presence - Weyoun, their second-in-command - and the fact that all systems had been destroyed as the Federation evacuated and left no trace of themselves left. _The shops are reopening,_ Weyoun went on, gracefully swinging in a light dance, _the Promenade is abuzz with activity once again, the habitat ring echoes with the laughter of happy children._

He was too happy for his own good. Mia had grown to accept that he was blind to the fact that many of the residents of the station were cowering away with fear and hate of him, no matter how pleasant and friendly he appeared.

 _I've doubled security patrols throughout the station,_ Damar announced, getting flabbergast from both Weyoun and Kira.

 _Are such...precautions really necessary?_ Weyoun asked an ever smug Dukat. Why did he even tolerate working with that man? He wondered so himself. Dukat was known to go behind his back and against his wishes most of the time, which made her child's father angry - but Damar was the worst of it.

 _I found that one can't be...too careful,_ Dukat answered insolently, locking gazes with the major, _when dealing with the Bajorans._

 _Oh, what's the matter, Dukat?_ she said mockingly. _Afraid it will take the station away from you again?_ She was counting on it as much as Mia was; she silently thanked Nerys for that.

Blasted Damar dared to test her. _You're welcome to try,_ he dared. He almost worked with setting Kira off before Weyoun stepped in, raising both hands on either side to make the peace.

 _Come now, come now, there's no need for this petty bickering. We're all friends here._

However, Nerys didn't seem to believe him, for she was looking at him disgustedly and disbelievingly. Are _we?_

Weyoun was stunned that she even asked him, and hurt that she didn't believe him. Well, the major had every right to. And of course, Weyoun was eager to settle the dispute, ever the "peacemaker". _Of course, Major. And if you have any suggestions, feel free to bring them to ME. At any time._ He was smiling, enjoying being superior now to Dukat. It had also become clear that, despite Dukat's claims that the Founder had agreed to let him have Captain Sisko's daughter, he must have been boasting about it for the hell of it. But did _Weyoun_ suspect it?

Of course not, she decided. It wasn't his place to question his "god", after all.

Kira's words tightened. _Fine. We'd like the station's Bajoran security reinstated._ Damar scoffed, but she didn't stop just because he brought up the mention of the weapons given back to those security forces either. _That's right._

 _The station no longer requires a Bajoran security force._ Of course Dukat would say no. Weyoun, however, said nothing; he was internally raging at the Gul refusing to follow in his shadow. He turned his head halfway when the other man "assured" Kira that HIS troops could handle any problems that might arise, but she didn't back down.

 _The Federation AND Bajor always shared equal responsibility for security. I thought you said we would have the same arrangement with the Dominion. And after all, we ARE all "friends" here, aren't we?_ She looked at Weyoun with a knowing smile and a secret enjoyment at turning his own words back onto him, which he didn't like one bit but wouldn't let her see. Instead, he took a deep breath and turned to look back at Gul Dukat.

 _Perhaps you should...reconsider your decision._ Mia wanted to fully believe he sided with Kira in this, but she wouldn't be so naïve as her brother still was. Weyoun really wanted to set things right, but because he allied with the Dominion, so many had their reasons not to trust him, and anything he did to please anyone else wouldn't change that.

However, Weyoun was the only one to trust the Bajorans to not attack if not Dukat, who advanced on him slowly. _The order stands,_ he said with an almost growl. You _may trust the Bajorans, but_ I _don't. And until they earn my trust..._ He fixed hard eyes with Nerys'. _...I prefer to keep them unarmed. And if you were in MY position, Major, you would do exactly the same thing._

Nerys glared at him but didn't answer. Weyoun could still smell the hostility in the air as she could. _Perhaps...it would be best to let the matter rest for awhile,_ he suggested with a nervous nod. He walked the major to the door, leaving the two Cardassians behind. _I'm sure we'll all be able to resolve all of these minor problems to our mutual satisfaction._

 _I'll be sure to remember that,_ Kira said coolly.

 _I'm sure you will. And one last thing,_ Weyoun added as she started to leave, only to pause and turn back irritably. She'd dealt with those men behind them enough and wanted nothing more than to join Mia, Odo and Quark - even if the Ferengi was enough rattling to the nerves for her day. _Odo. Is he aware that I am doing everything I can to strengthen the bond between the Dominion and the Bajoran people?_

Nerys frowned again. _Why don't you ask him yourself?_

 _Oh, no. No, I wouldn't want to bother him._ He revered Odo as a god even if the constable wasn't, which was cute but too frustrating even for Odo. However, a friendship would have blossomed if things weren't so tense at the present. He actually wanted Odo to like him unlike the unsympathetic female Changeling which Mia still hated passionately for having Odo's powers taken and his exile from the Great Link.

Unspoken to the major was that Weyoun wanted to know if Mia was doing well, since he knew that Kira knew he was the father, and it still unnerved her. Mia decided to voice herself through their bond. _You couldn't ask me yourself?_

He sighed. _Believe me, I want to establish a bond between all of us after these hard three months. How is the child?_

She looked down at the three months' worth as she readied more Cardassian specialties. _We're both fine,_ was all she could say before she cut off the link for him to get back to work.

~o~

She'd been cutting off their conversations more than enough lately; he wouldn't pretend to know she wasn't affected by activity on the station as of late, and Weyoun had said it numerous times: he loathed seeing her like this. She and the baby were doing well, but no decision on a name as of yet. He wasn't particularly excellent at names, so he trusted her judgment enough to surprise in the end.

He watched Major Kira go with a twitching of the mouth, knowing she didn't trust him as much as Mia did - and her brother, of course. That boy; he had no idea that his fondness for the ambassador prevented him from seeing what was really in front of him. His stories on the "Occupation" were disgraces and could not be sent out to shame the reputation of the Dominion. And what was worse: Dukat was allowing his paranoia to get the best of him.

"She's a fascinating woman, isn't she?"

He wasn't surprised that Dukat's latest ruffling of Kira's feathers would include infuriating her by keeping the weaponry out of the hands of her own people. "I wouldn't know," he said absently. "But I DO know we need her as an _ally._ " He whirled around and fiercely gazed at the Gul; if Major Kira, the woman Mia regarded as a mother and an eventual godmother to their child - and one of the fiercest fighters and public figures in history - was not on their side, then this would not spell well for a future alliance between the Dominion and Bajor. A non-aggression pact was not the same as an actual joining, so it wasn't enough.

"The Bajorans will NEVER be our allies."

Weyoun glared at Damar; no one asked his opinion, so how _dare_ he? "Out," he ordered, and when the fool dumbfoundedly looked between him and his commander, Weyoun raised his voice. "Don't look at him when _I'm_ telling you to leave. NOW!"

Damar finally moved at his commander's nod, returning Weyoun's glowers as he exited the office. If he had it in him, he could order the fool's demotion which was better than death - death was too fast and easy, whereas suffering in low-living proved satisfactory.

"I find him useful." If only Dukat's praise of his favorite officer didn't provoke him.

"In the future..." He locked gazes in another match. "...it might be prudent if you would include _me_ regarding ALL station policy." The impassive expression was his answer, and Weyoun dropped it for the sake of the most important issue. "Now, about the wormhole. You assured me we would be able to dismantle it within the month; that was _two_ months ago." Two months, and thousands of Dominion reinforcements remained trapped in the Gamma Quadrant.

"Well, I admit..." There it went again. "...work is proceeding more slowly than expected. But as you know, these are not _ordinary_ mines. Every time we deactivate or destroy one of them, its neighbor replicates a new one."

Of course he was well aware these mines were self-replicating, but time was not on their side with all the delays of reinforcements. The Federation might be outmatched by the Dominion at the present, but a lot could happen as much as he wanted to keep the situation as it was. And the Founder herself was trapped here in the Alpha Quadrant herself; she, too, was wearing thin on patience. "We have to deactivate it," he insisted, making Dukat irritated even more.

"And we _will._ There's no need for panic." Who said anything about panic when it was HE who was panicking about placing his faith in the hands of the Dominion? "We _are_ winning the war," he said as he sat down and picked the PADD up.

Weyoun's thread snapped in half. "For the moment, _yes_ , but to defeat the Federation, we're going to need reinforcements and new supplies of ketracel-white." Even the Jem'Hadar needed stabilization if they were to fight for their masters; they were uncontrollable monsters without it. " _Soon_."

"Weyoun..." Dukat stood back up and looked him down, wanting nothing more than to intimidate him in return. "...I said that I would deal with the minefield...and I _will_."

Weyoun huffed in his face and stalked out of his office. Of course he would, but he was so sure of himself and his pride was what got him into trouble in the first place.

He thought about the Gul and Mia; they were seen together a few times, provoking whispers and staining her reputation, it seemed. But few knew the truth, including himself which had relieved him utterly. He couldn't read off the Cardassians that well all the time, but Mia hadn't been touched by Dukat in three months - not at all. She was still all Weyoun's, but their intimate relationship had lessened as their baby began to grow in her womb, causing her body to ache in every part, sick in the mornings, and no time for her to practice her skills with him. Her secret place had been ransacked, besides that, which devastated her to no end. But she'd taken some phasers and remaining Klingon weaponry to her quarters as she prepared for all of this to happen.

But neither of them prepared for the growing distance between them.

~o~

Business at Quark's wasn't faring well, most notably. The Ferengi's bar had been full of Cardassians indulging with the dabo tables, Mia being one of the few girls left, and avoiding the advances of Dukat's soldiers hadn't been any easier than it had been with the Gul himself. As for Quark, he often complained of the Jem'Hadar just sitting around and taking up space, not eating or drinking anything, just sitting there and refusing anything Quark offered, even the holosuites.

Now Mia finally had her break from these pig-headed reptile men and chose to lean in and listen to Kira and Odo's conversation.

"I'm telling you, Odo," Nerys said somberly, shaking her head, "Dukat has only one thing on his mind, and it's revenge." Yes, revenge for the Bajorans regaining their strength and fighting back for the suffering they endured, but Dukat called it an "endurance, a test of their brutality". "He can't stand the thought that Bajor defeated Cardassia."

Odo nodded understandably; revenge by means of repeating what happened before. "You think he...wants to reopen the camps?"

"Eventually."

"Well, then, I suppose we should be grateful that he has...Weyoun looking over his shoulder." And Weyoun was doing a hell of a fine job at it, making sure the prideful, arrogant ruler of Cardassia knew his place. Dukat had no idea he was simply a puppet instead of a true ally. Weyoun might follow orders that did harm, but it wasn't his choice to disobey. And he really wanted no trouble even when it actually happened...

"I don't know about this. He's a hard one to figure out, but...I trust him more than I trust Dukat." Nerys surprised Mia there; just weeks ago, she'd spoken shock at the news that Mia's baby was Weyoun's as well, and now she was saying she _trusted_ him?

"Weyoun knows it's in the Dominion's best interest to honor its treaty with Bajor. They want to prove with the rest of the Alpha Quadrant that they're true to their word." Mia scoffed to herself as she wiped the counter when no one else was available; yeah, true to their own words when waiting for their own time to strike the moment the system was helpless. The rest of the Alpha Quadrant ought to know the Dominion better than that.

Nerys looked up at him then. "He asked about you, seemed very concerned about how you thought of him," she said, making him scoff.

"I try _not_ to think of him." Now, if Weyoun ever heard about that, he'd have been devastated. Thanks to Nerys for "reading" her mind.

"I'll have to mention it to him." She meant it to make them both laugh, and it worked. Mia looked up at the sight of them smiling and allowed herself to do the same. When around each other, it seemed that they could do the job best in these circumstances. For two beings who decided to put all romantic motions aside, they still cared about each other.

And then she heard the major voice her frustration about Dukat in the captain's office - her father's office - and the Federation losing the war while no action between them was taken. Sadly, while Odo agreed with her, he had to remind her that they had to bide their time and keep Bajor neutral as Benjamin had said.

"Sorry for the wait," Quark said hasitly, bringing in Nerys' usual. "Things have been a little busier than expected. And it's on the house." Odo rolled his eyes, Mia snorted and picked up a batch for herself to join Nerys.

"What do you want, Quark?" Kira asked irritably.

"Peace, love...and understanding. The usual. Not to mention a generous profit march. And I never thought to say this, but as occupations go: this one's not so bad. But I'm not just talking about profit here. Look around, Major. Do you see any grueling Bajoran slave laborors on the ground, any fences dividing the Promenade, much less hear the cry of starving children?"

He had a point; this wasn't like the Occupation of Bajor, but the presence of Cardassians had the same effect: fear. "Now, don't get me wrong." Quark leaned in and whispered so all three of them would hear him and him only.

"I miss the Federation, too. All I'm saying is that things could be a lot worse."

Odo grumbled and nodded once the bartender was gone. "I hate to say this, but he's right. The Dominion seems determined to prove it could be a friend to Bajor."

"Of course, but ask yourself this," Mia said as she sat behind her side of the bar. "If the Dominion really wants Bajor as a friend, then how come no Bajorans, both security and civilian, save for this one -" She nodded to Nerys. "- on this station?"

~o~

Flanked by two Jem'Hadar as always, Weyoun smiled and nodded, greeted every civilian he did while wandering the Promenade. He had the rest of the evening for some exploring and mingling with anyone he could, perhaps try to see Mia again when he was greeted with a familiar face.

"Hey, excuse me, Mr. Weyoun!"

Jake almost ran into one of the guards who was about to stop him when Weyoun waved him down. "Oh, Jake, please, I prefer Weyoun." He started to walk away when the young man began to follow after him, still speaking.

"That's the kind of detail people want to know. Would this be a good time?"

"For what?" Oh, he knew exactly what.

"For the interview we talked about. You know, for the Federation News Services."

Weyoun laughed and shook his head. "Oh, I'm afraid that will be quite impossible." Even when he was slandering the Dominion-Cardassian "takeover" of Terok Nor as it was. Their reputation - which included his own - was dampened enough as it was. "Given I've read your previous articles. And they left me with _one_ -" He held up one finger in front of the gobsmacked youth's face. "- inescapable conclusion: you are BIASED against the Dominion."

Jake sputtered. "Wh-wha-what gave you that idea?"

"You keep referring to us as the station's, quote, 'occupying force'," Weyoun answered sternly.

"WHAT?! What's wrong with that?" Weyoun laughed again; Jake was a good boy, but he was such a little fool if not the same as Damar.

"It has a negative connotation. All your articles are filled with it, which is why I've been forced to..." He paused to smile and nod at another passerby. "...withold the transmission."

" _Are you telling me no one from the Federation read my reports?!"_

Weyoun glared at him to keep his voice down; he was on the verge of losing his patience. "If I don't send them, they don't read them."

"What about freedom of the press?"

He rolled his eyes. "Please, tell me you're not that naïve."

Jake looked like he was about to lose his temper, too. "The only reason I stayed here was to report on the occupation," he said angrily, now in a match with the man he thought was his friend after their agreement.

"You see, there you go _again_. This is NOT an occupation! This is a Cardassian station, Jake. And I'm sure you're aware there are no Dominion troops on Bajor; why should there be? We have a treaty with them. We're their _friends._ "

He could sense the boy's distress; he slapped the PADD on his palm as emphasis and proof. "Alright, I'm sorry," he grumbled. "I didn't mean anything bias."

"If you want me to send your articles to the Federation, you're going to have to provide a more...balanced prospective."

"I would NEVER write Dominion propaganda!" Jake burst out again; they were back to their debate again. Weyoun threw his hands up in exasperation.

"I wouldn't dream of _asking_ you to. All I want is for you to keep an _opened mind._ "

"ALL RIGHT! My mind is opened now; can we do the interview?"

Oh, he wasn't getting into it THAT easily. A young mind wasn't easy to break in a single day. Laughing, Weyoun clapped his hands together. "All in good time. You keep writing and I'll keep reading; let's leave it at that." He slapped his hand on his shoulder, but he wasn't smiling. "Good day, Jake -"

"Keep your hand off my brother."

"Mia!" He couldn't tell her how happy he was to see her - and Jake was relieved, too - but he felt his joy short-lived when he saw the raging red color of her skin as she bared her gritted teeth at him and snarled through them.

"We need to talk. NOW. Jake, meet me back at your quarters later. Ambassador..." He didn't like how she called him by his title instead of his name like she always did with such affection. He wasn't fooled; she'd heard every word he and her brother were saying. He followed her into one of the empty corridors further down, and as soon as they were alone -

 _SLAP!_

"You son of a bitch!" Mia shrieked furiously. "How could you do that to MY BROTHER?!""

Weyoun rubbed his throbbing, stinging cheek equally furiously as he bore own hurtfully and enraged on his pregnant lover - and older sister of the young man who biased the Dominion. "He was writing a bad name for the Dominion that I had to do what needed to be done. He's a fantastic journalist, but he's just too short-sighted for what's really happening."

"Jake's telling the truth, passionate about his career, and you're serving your so-called gods by taking this away from him! Weyoun, if I kept saying 'I can't believe what's happening', I'd be wasting words," she seethed, hands on her hips. "You're really forcing me to choose sides now."

"And why's that?" he thundered. "Because your brother writes opposing stories for the Federation while he remains on this station? He's responsible for choosing to remain here had he not foreseen that 'freedom of the press' comes at a price."

"Just as I chose to remain here because I'm carrying your child. But I had no idea Dukat would have used me as a humiliation image, so that makes both me AND my brother naïve as you called him," Mia raged, tears now streaming down her cheeks. "And we both made our mistakes."

Weyoun stopped, feeling as though his heart had dropped full of rocks. Was she saying that she...? He stretched further and sensed that she hated him for how he was treating her brother, telling her he loved her and wanting Major Kira as an ally and for Constable Odo to like him when he debased her brother, the only blood family besides their unborn child she had left on this station. This very station which was her home, overrun once more by the Cardassians, which she hated as much as the Founders.

"I swear to God, Weyoun..." She reached up to stick her finger in his face, right between his eyes. "...if you don't gain my brother's trust and put his stories out there, your balls will be deflated by the time I'm finished with you that you'll never see coming. I'll even cut off our bond and prevent you from meeting our child as soon as she's born."

~o~

Nerys was laughing her head off mentally after rerunning the amusing story of how Mia talked down Weyoun for his censorship of Jake's news articles. A part of her thought he deserved it because this was young Jake's life, but another insisted that Mia was being too harsh because this was the father of her child. And now she was forced to put those thoughts aside because DUKAT summoned her once more.

"You wanted to see me."

He smiled and casually leaned back in the chair that was Ben Sisko's and Ben Sisko's only. "I _always_ want to see you, Major." If there was never a time she didn't wish she could punch that smug face, she couldn't remember. "And therein lies the problem: it's been three months since my return to the station, and you and I have barely spent time with one another." He rose from behind the desk and walked around slowly, keeping his eyes on her. "Oh, I know you could point out the various meetings we attended together, but...they never seem to offer us the opportunity to venture _beyond_ station business."

He was trying once more to get under her suit. Kira fumed. "I don't have time for this." She turned to stalk out when he called her back. Impatiently, she whipped around.

"Major, I haven't dismissed you yet. Come now," he said once she was in front of him, "have the last three months been THAT bad for you? For Miss Sisko, in particular? And the child she carries?"

Kira jerked her head up in shock. He knew about Mia's baby. "How do you know about Mia?"

He chuckled. "I've noticed all the signs; shouldn't that be enough? I have several children, including Ziyal, after all. I've known the moment I walked back on the deck of this station. Gives me another good reason to not take the girl into my bed regardless of what everyone else thinks. She shouldn't have to worry about me laying a finger on her pretty little hide." She wanted to cringe but kept it together. "Now, back to the present. You and I."

"Must be why I'm here now," she answered, now that his intentions were clear. "To flatter you. To tell you what a...good job you're doing and how happy we all are to have you back."

He sighed and looked down. "Sarcasm doesn't become you, Major. It's your..." He walked around her. "...directness that I found most appealing."

"Dukat." Kira followed his motions. "I got better things to do than to stand around and help you play out one of your little fantasies." She tried to go through the door, but his whole body stopped her. He looked her down in a manner that made her burn.

"You feel I've...betrayed you."

"Not just me. _Everyone_."

"Including my own people. Cardassia was on the edge of an abyss, Major," he growled. "The war with the Klingons left us a third-rate power. My people have lost their way, and I've made them _strong_ again."

"At what price? You _sold_ Cardassia - your planet which you say you love so much - to the fascist DOMINION!" Nerys said hotly. "A high price, if you ask me."

"YES." Now his whole face was alight with fire and passion, an uncontrollable frenzy. "And look what we're getting in return: the Alpha Quadrant." His face then softened in an unnerving manner which wasn't the one she'd grown used to seeing - it bordered on something else which was nowhere near the way Odo had begun to look at her. "I could make things better here for you, Kira." She hissed and stepped back when his face was too close enough for her to smell his foul, kanar-smelling breath.

"Start with your breath."

"I'm a patient man," he replied. "I can wait."

"Wait for WHAT?" she spat. "What do you think is going to happen here, Dukat? That you're going to...wear me down with your 'charming' personality? That your smile will sweep me off my feet? Are you so _deluded_ that you actually believe we're going to have an intimate relationship that you won't have with Captain Sisko's daughter?!" She exclaimed and huffed, striking his hand away when it came up to touch her cheek; the cool scales scratched her skin.

"Oh, but we already do," Dukat drawled, stepping aside and gesturing for the door for her to finally leave. "Good day, Major. I have work to do."

~o~

"We pledge our loyalty to the Founders from now until death."

"Then receive this reward from the Founders; may it keep you strong." As soon as he was finished passing down each vial of white to the Jem'Hadar, Weyoun closed his eyes, his mind in such turmoil after the cold, unforgiving, HATEFUL words his beloved had spoken to him yesterday.

Mia had said she made a mistake staying behind on the station, that she should have gone off with her father; she chose to remain only because of their child and her brother. Since yesterday, she had not spoken to him, even hurried away from him as soon as she saw him. She was doing everything she could to avoid him, even threaten to tell Gul Dukat if he so much as tried to teleport into her quarters. Weyoun called it borderline immature, if you asked him. Of course he hated for how Jake was now, but why couldn't she see that?

His escorts relished the white in their systems as they left the area. Sighing, Weyoun bowed his head, ignoring Dukat altogether and clasped his hands in prayer, wishing that Mia would find it in her heart to forgive him and come to her senses. His heart ached with emptiness and longing over her rejection of him. He couldn't force the bond communication either.

"You enjoy that, don't you? That constant reminder that you're their _master._ " Dukat held up one of the vials of white and waved it in front of Weyoun's face.

"The Founders are their masters; I am merely a servant as are the Jem'Hadar." He took the vial away to rejoin its companions, looking up at Dukat with rolled eyes. "And _you_."

"But even amongst servants, _someone_ has to be in charge."

"Oh, that's exactly the kind of observation I've come to expect from you, Dukat," he said, placing the case of white aside. "And interesting, yet somewhat...petty." If he thought he could say he was better than Weyoun, he was sorely mistaken.

The doors swished open. "Forgive the interruption," Damar's voice spoke; however, when Weyoun looked up, he saw none other than Odo.

"Founder," he gasped, walking over almost with haste and spreading his arms out in the traditional gesture. "How may I be of service?"

"I want my Bajoran security staff reinstated and responsible for all security on the Promenade," Odo said briskly, not wanting any refusal and expected it to be that way. Both Dukat and Damar were utterly shocked, but Weyoun saw no harm. He, after all, lived to serve the Founders.

"Consider it done. I don't see any problem with that." He turned around angrily when Dukat objected. "This is between ME and ODO, not you included. Keep out of it." He smiled apologetically and turned his attention back to the security chief. "Your men may report to the armory within the hour. However..." His face hardened. "...now that I've done something for you, there's something _you_ can consent to do for _me_."

 **It was hard for me to write the scene between Weyoun and Jake as well as the altercation between the lovers. :( While I watched the actual scene in the episode, I felt like I was channeling Mia's rage while Weyoun smacked down Jake's stories the way he did. I felt EXACTLY what she's feeling now. Forgiveness for what the father of her child is doing to her family and friends won't come anytime soon, but don't lose hope.**


	18. Resistance

Chapter Seventeen

Resistence

Two more days, and enough was enough. The time had come to finally act against these monsters around them.

Nerys was tired of waking up every morning at five hundred hours from sleeping in a comfortable bed and writing reports for the Dominion, Odo was nauseated from sitting on the council with Weyoun and Dukat, and Jake had wanted to write a story about impending protests against the Dominion despite Weyoun blocking the transmissions - which she still loathed him for and still was not speaking to him - and as a result of Kira warning that things were different than the Occupation of Bajor, Vedek Yassim hung herself for all to see after her final words: "Evil MUST be opposed!"

Mia had been there when it happened, and that was two days ago. She could never get the image out of her head...not even the look on Kira's face as she came to her senses. "She called me a defender of evil," she told Mia quietly, bowing her head in shame, "and by the next morning, I took another look around me and saw what I had been doing all along. I became one of the people I despise with my life; I wasn't fighting these demons, just helping and letting them get away with it."

Now she and Odo - the latter still hesitant about all of this - had formed a new secret resistence. Mia gladly joined as risky as it was for both her and the baby. And Jake was in, as was Rom.

~o~

 _"Damar has been trying to contact you for the last five hours."_

 _She knew he would come. Wordlessly, Kira held up her comm badge which had the Dominion symbol as opposed to the old Federation one. Finally she forced the words past her sore throat. "I keep going it over and over in my mind and I can't believe...I just stood by there ready to stop a protest against the Dominion. ME." Nerys shook her head and repeated what she told Mia not long ago. "When I was in the resistance, I despised people like me. I'm a collaborator, Odo."_

 _He reached over and gently touched her forearm before closing his fingers around it firmly. "That's NOT true! You're doing exactly what Captain Sisko wanted you to do; you and the rest of Bajor are to remain neutral and stay out of the fighting." Oh, she was so tired of hearing about this; there had to be a time where enough was enough, and the time was now. She went on regardless of what she was told over and over all this time by this man she loved so much despite their agreement to remain professional._

 _"And they used to have a saying in the resistance: if you're not fighting them, you're helping them." Vedek Yassim had called her an apologist, the choice of words worse than a traitor. "Half the Alpha Quadrant is out there fighting for my freedom while I am eating a full meal, sleeping in a warm bed everyday - even writing reports for the murderers who run this station."_

 _"These are difficult times for everyone," Odo said with a sigh. "Do you think I enjoy sitting down with Dukat and Weyoun every day while they plot the destruction of the Federation?"_

 _Nerys looked up at him with a shocked face and heart. "Odo, I'm not pointing a finger at you. I'm the one who told you to get more involved in the first place. No, this is about me. This is about...being able to get up in the morning and look in the mirror and...not feel nauseated about what I see. She was right; I have to do something. I have to start fighting back."_

 _"No, that would be a mistake. Active resistance would trigger a crackdown -"_

 _"Odo." She interrupted him firmly. "I don't want to end up fighting you, too. But if I have to, I will."_

 _Some moments of silence passed before he nodded with heavy acquiesce. "Alright, but let's find a more...discreet place to plan the new...resistance."_

~o~

Ziyal had been at school on Bajor and was now on the station, at her father's wishes, which sickened Nerys to her core. The girl was as much a non-blood-related daughter to her as Mia was, but the fact that her father was a puppet-stringed, callous tyrant in league with the Dominion was what sparked the whispers at the University of Bajor. "I don't know what made me think I belonged there," Ziyal had said on the first night back on DS9 - never would it be Terok Nor to Kira. This station was her home because Nerys was here as well as her father, despite the last time she defied him and he abandoned her here.

Now she was giving him a chance after the betrayal, wanting both her father and Nerys in her life, but Kira was doing this only for her sake and NOT Dukat's or her own. She was a gifted artist and had a knack of a talent; her father was as much proud of her as Kira was...and that was the first time they actually agreed on something. They both cared for Ziyal and didn't want to see her hurt.

Dukat actually still deluded himself with the fact that they had a bond, and he would always get away from Nerys' denial. He still disgusted her.

Now Kira was overhead the view of Quark's, watching the activity as the servants of the Dominion themselves - Cardassian and Jem'Hadar alike - busied themselves with either just sitting or standing around, or enjoying games of dabo and kanar. Quark was doing everything he could to persuade incoming customers to the spinning tables or holosuite entertainment, and Mia was oggled by various Cardassian men at every table.

Which would end soon with what she and Rom decided to play during their secret "fun" against these beasts.

And speak of the devil: in walked Damar, striding for Quark's bar as the creature of habit that he was. After a hard day of work, he _deserved_ a glass of kanar. She pitied Quark for the Jem'Hadar taking up all the space. "Looks like he's asking Quark if he's seen the PADD he's working on," she noted, seeing Quark shaking his head and Damar slamming his palm flat on the counter.

Rom nodded. "My brother tells the truth; he _hasn't_ seen it."

Kira grinned maliciously at how the view acted out every word of the plan. "Damar's not happy. The PADD contained a draft of the secret memorandum he was working on concerning the shortage of white." Sisko and Starfleet's latest work while not pursued by Jem'Hadar attack fighters. "In it, he speculates that without the drug, the Jem'Hadar will run amok, killing everyone and everything in their path. Damar recommends that if the Cardassians can't bring down the minefield and reopen the supply line from the Gamma Quadrant, they should poison the last ration of white...eliminating the Jem'Hadar before it's too late."

She paused and laughed to herself at the fun that would break out, just tearing the Jem'Hadar and Cardassians apart like this. Rom was so good with his hands despite his idiocy most of the time. They turned their attention to the bar's side entrance and saw three angry-looking Jem'Hadar entering, heading straight for the bar where Damar was. And just at the right time...

~o~

The Cardassians and Jem'Hadar could pretend all they wanted they were allies - but they hated each other, in truth.

Weyoun impassively scowled at the mess made at Quark's. Dozens of Jem'Hadar and Cardassians beaten or dead all because of damnable Damar's mistake at losing an important PADD of the life of one species. He could hear from far away Damar protesting that the Jem'Hadar attacked him first, but Dukat couldn't care less and told him to get out. Surveying the dead still on the floor but being taken care of, Odo and his security force doing everything they could, Weyoun clasped his hands behind his back and approached Dukat. "How could Damar be SO stupid as to leave an inflammatory document lying around for _anyone to find?_ "

Dukat gritted his teeth and casted his eyes downward into Weyoun's lavender ones, hard as purple ice. "Your men _stole_ it from -" He tried to turn the fault around on HIS men, but he was such a pathetic imbecile to assume the Jem'Hadar would think to sneak into Damar's office and snoop around for information on their life support. Jem'Hadar were controlled soldiers bribed on their precious white, not lone-acting individuals.

"Jem'Hadar are NOT thieves," Weyoun argued.

"And Damar is not a liar!"

"Keep your voice down," he hissed. If any of their men heard them, the dispute would get worse between them and might as well question them for favoriting sides; their men would never peacefully coexist. It was like a mismatched family always in states of disagreement, one thing he himself could never tolerate. "Our men need to see that we are still allies." If they could not fix this petty disagreement themselves, then their masters would show them that they had no choice but to go along with each other because whether they liked it or not, they were manifested sides. Starting with forcing Dukat to smile.

"Gentlemen," Odo said from behind them, "we need to get everyone out of here."

He nodded; their men needed lessons in discipline. "Odo is right. Tell your men they are confined to quarters in between disciplinary hearings, and I'll do the same for mine. And keep smiling."

However, as he ordered all his Jem'Hadar to leave the bar, he wondered if not his men or Damar, WHO started this mess?

~o~

How could Nerys do this to him and go ahead to steal the PADD of information of ketracel-white shortage from Damar and leave it lying around the way she did? She and the others - Rom, Mia and Jake - might have agreed, but he didn't. Now look what happened: the deaths of less than two dozen of Dukat and Weyoun's men in Quark's bar. The Federation was losing, and he didn't agree with the statistics any more, but that did not mean going around and starting mayhem between their enemies around them. She ought to know better than this, being in combat when he was never a soldier.

Not only that, Nerys had it in her to question his loyalties. She might say that she didn't, but Odo did not believe her - for a moment. He spent his days with Weyoun and Dukat trying to make sure Nerys' beloved Bajor remained untouched, so the last thing he needed was forced to test his allegiances and planned squabblings amongst his adversaries.

And the last face he needed to see just as he and Nerys were in the middle of this quarrel was the _Female Changeling_ entering his office.

He had not seen, much less spoken to, her since his dejection from the Great Link. What business did SHE have here in the Alpha Quadrant and on DS9 among _solids?_ She had to make her presence known at a time like this. "Hello, Odo. It's good to see you again."

He held his place, keeping his eyes hard on her and refusing to say one word to this... "Leave us," she said to Nerys. "I need to speak with Odo."

"Do you?" Nerys replied acidly. She hated this one for placing the virus in Odo's body and rendering him unable to keep his solid form so he could be brought back to their people for judgment over the death of one of their own. If Mia was here now, she would say and do worse than a simple question.

The Founder was unaffected by the major's bluntness. "It's all right, Nerys," Odo said. "Might as well hear what she has to say." And get this over with; he hadn't all day with this leader of the enemy of the Federation. She paid Nerys' exiting form no more mind, except for sudden curiosity.

"You called her...Nerys."

"What of it?" he spat.

"You used to call her 'Major'. Using the first name of a solid denotes intimacy."

His relationship with Nerys was none of her business. Ignoring her altogether, Odo walked back around his desk and changed the uncomfortable topic. "You're a long way from home. Here to keep an eye on the war effort?" he challenged, now knowing why else she'd be stranded from her domain.

"I'm quite content to leave the details of the war to the Vorta," she answered. "I'm only here because Captain Sisko mined the entrance to the wormhole, wanted to oversee the station taken back to our Cardassian allies. But it's _you_ who's the reason I am here. I have spent too much time amongst the solids and felt the need to be with one of my own."

Odo huffed. "Well, that's ironic, considered what happened the last time we...crossed paths." Last time involving that Changeling which posed as the Tzenkethi ambassador and would have sabotaged the relationship between his planet and the Federation. It wasn't like he had any choice in the matter.

"You caused the death of a fellow Changeling, Odo. Turning you into a solid was the only punishment severe enough for your crime."

His anger bubbled; he and Mia sometimes shared the same feelings in never letting anything go so easily, severe as his circumstances were. "And now that I'm a Changeling again, you come in here - in my own office - as though nothing ever happened?! If Mia was here, she would have agreed with me!" Too late, he realized the mistake he made mentioning her name.

The Founder looked surprised. "Mia - as in Amelia Sisko? I know how fond you are of her even though she is a solid like the major. You consider her your own responsibilty."

"She IS," Odo ground out, "and she is even more to me now that you know of her. You do not want her to find you and lose her temper."

She looked him on in amusement, wanting to see a human girl dare to challenge a shape-shifter. "She can dwell on the past all she wants, but we have forgiven you Odo."

"But _I_ haven't forgiven _you_."

"Well, then, it is time to forget the past, Odo."

As if THAT made a difference! "And what about the present?" he went on furiously. "You're waging a war against MY HOME!"

Now he struck her. Her eyes widened with disgust and shock that he declared himself as one of the solids. "This isn't your home; you belong with _us_ in the Great Link, no matter how hard you try to distance from us. You say you're content here because you don't know what you're capable of becoming," she sneered. Snorting, she turned for the door. "Perhaps if we spend some time together, you might begin to understand."

He watched her go without another word. He still hated her and his people for everything, for the deaths of Starfleet officers and innocent civilians...but she was also right. He DIDN'T understand because he was never around his own kind. And for the moment, he stopped thinking about the resistance and pondered her words.

~o~

"Mia, please, let me talk to you."

"Go away, Weyoun."

"We haven't even spoken or communicated in -"

"Days," she snapped, glaring into his wounded eyes. At one time, Jake and Kira asked her if she was being too hard on him, but she didn't care. She wouldn't forgive him for a long time for how he treated her brother, manipulated him in the beginning only to backstab him in the end. That was what all Vorta did; they lulled and struck when the time came too late. Now she wondered, for sure, if she made a mistake mating and conceiving with this one in front of her.

"You can't avoid me forever, Mia," Weyoun insisted. "You can't keep resenting me for the transmission block."

"Go to hell," she snarled, making his eyes glaze over. "You still haven't done what I asked of you, and I never waste my words like some physically defenseless little girl who can't weild a _kar'takin_."

His temper exploded on her then. "You have no right to question me, make threats over such petty issues when I have too much on my hands to worry about with Dukat and the minefield blocking thousands of Jem'Hadar ships waiting to join the war, and the Founder herself -"

"Speak of the one and she will appear."

Mia whipped around, seeing none other than the female Changeling. "Indeed, speak of the devil," she said, shoving her hair over one shoulder. "What do you want?"

"Now, that is a reaction no different than Odo."

Odo had seen the one responsible for his grief years back, and the female had approached her because he mentioned her name. Mia almost lost it, but he must have spoken of her by accident. "Founder," Weyoun said behind her, walking around and bowing. "You honor us with your presence."

"So, Miss Sisko," the Founder said, nodding briefly, "we finally meet."

"And I hope this is the last time," Mia answered coolly, wishing she could turn and run away from her and the father of her child. To Odo or Kira, or Jake. Or Quark. Any one of them. All to get away from these two.

"Oh, come now, Odo wouldn't be happy that his ward is behaving worse than he is. And Weyoun, shouldn't you be meeting with him and Dukat before I make my presence?" Mia forced her face away from the smooth, clay-like hand that touched her cheek in an attempt to patronize her and looked behind to Weyoun, who bowed again.

"Of course, Founder. I shall see you soon after."

Mia glared at the Changeling as soon as her lover was gone. "I don't have time for you. I have to get back to work soon."

The shape-shifter had no reaction other than cold blue eyes bearing down into hers. "Of course, then. I wouldn't want to keep you away from important duties. But know this, Amelia: Odo doesn't belong with you or Nerys - or any of these solids aboard this station. We've had our differences, but they are always resolved. Just as you and _Weyoun_ don't belong together."

She walked away then, leaving Mia alone, horrified. Now she had it in her to reopen her bond with the one she loved and would forgive when she had it in her: _She knows...she knows about us._

~o~

"There's obviously some bad blood between the Cardassians and the Jem'Hadar," Jake said as he paced the room in front of the major and the constable. "It wouldn't take that much to get them to go at each other again -"

Kira shook her head. "No, I'm not sure we should do that again."

Rom looked shocked, given what happened in his brother's bar. "But it worked so well!" he protested.

She ignored him and looked at Odo. "What do you think?"

Things between them had been tense ever since their converation in his quarters after the female Changeling left; he didn't need her pity on his feelings for Nerys, and she insisted on clarity - and that was "joining" with her, exchanging feelings and bringing peace. Nerys had been concerned about the Founder finding about their resistance, but exchanging thoughts wasn't included. Nerys just...didn't understand what it was like to finally become a part of this...indescribable paradise he began to feel.

 _This is one way to MANIPULATE you. Whatever it is, you're going to have to keep your head clear and focus on saving some lives around here._ He could never stop remembering those words in particular.

He wished he didn't love her so much, like he told the Founder. He wished he could tear out all of these feelings so wonderful and so difficult at the same time; when they had a disagreement, he was devastated as he knew she was. Was this how Mia felt when she and WEYOUN had their disagreement over her brother and his affiliation with the Dominion?

He snapped back to her question. "It's a bad idea."

She nodded; she knew he was hiding something from her, but they were steering clear of distractions, and that was final. "Then we'll have to think of something else we can all agree on."

The door buzzed. All froze, but Rom was on the verge of panicking. "Who could that be?" he whispered.

Nerys held up one hand calmly. "We're all just sitting here and enjoying each other's company. Come in!" she called.

The door opened, and in strolled Mia holding a clearly dazed Quark. He'd been drinking, apparently. Odo almost laughed; he did not ever recall seeing the Ferengi this way at a time like this. "Brother!" Rom cried, jumping up and taking him by the arm and away from Mia. "Are you all right?"

"No." Quark's answer was slurred. "I'm not all right."

"He just got done sharing a bottle of kanar...with Damar," Mia clarified, not meaning for it to be a joke, but her boss burst out into a fit of shrieking laughter and stumbling onto the bed.

"Hey, good one! That _rhymes_." He was still laughing, but no one else thought it funny.

Jake shook his head. "You're drunk."

"Of course I'm drunk! I wouldn't be coming in here and associating myself with your little resistance cell if I _wasn't_ drunk."

"Well, then maybe you should leave before someone sees you here," Nerys said, almost cruelly.

Just then - surprising everyone, including Odo himself - Quark burst out into tears. "I tried...I tried my best to run my establishment on this station under this occupation. But you know what? It's no fun." He lowered his voice. "I don't like Cardassians. They're mean and arrogant, and I can't STAND the Jem'Hadar; they're creepy, just standing like statues and staring at you. I don't want to spend the rest of my life doing business with these people; I want the Federation back. I wanna sell _root beer_ again!"

Both Sisko siblings were rolling their eyes and shaking their heads even though they were agreeing with him, and Odo was tempted to join the gestures, with Quark still going on with his tirade until Nerys stopped him. "Alright, you made your point. You can relax."

"How _can_ I relax?" he countered. "When there's thousands of Jem'Hadar ships sitting on the other side of the wormhole waiting to come through?"

"Don't worry about it," Jake assured him. "They're stuck there."

Quark shook his head. "Not if what Damar told me is true."

A stunned silence filled the room until Nerys broke it.

"What are you talking about?"

"He said...he came up with a way to deactivate the mines. Dukat wants him to start field tests right away."

 **Oops, spells trouble. :O What will our heroes do now?**


	19. Behind Enemy Lines

Chapter Eighteen

Behind Enemy Lines

Mia had felt like her whole body was on the verge of shattering when Quark and Damar discussed the minefield deactivation, which had seemed impossible given Dukat hadn't managed thus far in the last three months. She could see it on the faces of her brother, Odo and Nerys, who had just prepared a raktajino for Quark to get his brain going straight again and asked him what Damar said exactly about shutting off all the mines.

He shook his head as he accepted the coffee-like beverage from her. "Yes, he said something about the station's...defector."

Odo leaned forward, repeating the word with doubtful shock. By defector, he was speaking of the only person on the station who knew how to activate and deactivate the mines... _Rom._ All eyes were on poor Rom now, who started to panic once again before his brother piped up again. "No, wait, that didn't sound right. I think it was...deflector. Yes, that's it; he said something about using the station's _deflector array._ "

The station's navigational deflector...useful and indispensable for making space debris like asteroids and microscopic particles turn away from stations and startships...but the self-replicating mines were in space and in range of the deflector, but that didn't mean they could be turned off by any means. How was Damar going to use the array?

"Rom, what do you think?" Kira asked him.

"I'm just glad it wasn't me," he answered with relief, but that wasn't what she meant. She sighed in frustration.

"About the _deflector array!_ " He really got on everyone's nerves, but not as much as his older brother's. "Is there ANY way to use it to deactivate the mines?"

"No, because I designed the mines myself to be self-replicating. The only way to keep them from replicating is to isolate via anti-graviton beam. The deflector array can't do that," he said proudly, which vanished as soon as a new thought jumped to life. "Unless you...reconfigure the field generators and refocus the emitters. Which would turn the deflector array into one big anti-graviton beam! The mines will be rendered vulnerable and let loose those Jem'Hadar ships into the Alpha Quadrant!"

Quark rolled his eyes. "Why didn't you think of that in the first place?"

"Quark," Nerys warned before looking back at Rom. "How can we disable the deflector array?"

"All you have to do," he answered eagerly, confidence returning from his brother's insult, "is access the EPS feed - electro-plasma system - and overload the waveguide. An overload will burn out its whole system."

So this was the plan: given the EPS feed was in a secured conduit which would set off an alarm, Odo was to shut it all off for five minutes and give Rom his chance to turn off the system. It would happen at eight hundred tomorrow morning, but Mia hoped it was worth it. They could not have the Dominion ships in the wormhole arrive, and there was no way her father could know of this when Weyoun was overseeing the transmissions. Either she or Jake would be in trouble...but their father and the rest of Starfleet had to know the minefield they all worked so hard to build up was in jeopardy.

~o~

So, Mia's employer's brother, the engineer, had tried to sabotage the deflector array's system and therefore prevent them from taking down the minefield. Weyoun smiled sinisterly as he watched from around the corner as the Ferengi was interrogated by Damar and a handful of his fellow officers. Just this morning, Rom was discovered in one of the secured conduits and triggered the alarm in the process; it was a miracle Damar had been in Odo's office when its chief wasn't present - what WAS Damar doing in there anyway? he wondered angrily - and caught him in time. Now he was going to pay for so boldly attempting to act against the Dominion. His death would be an example to everyone else aboard the station.

He looked behind him when his name was spoken. Turning around, he saw the Female Changeling herself. "Founder," he said with the bow. "You honor with your presence."

"Has he said who else is involved with the attempted sabotage?" she asked as she came to stand beside him just as Damar stood and almost struck Rom only to be restrained by two of his men. Weyoun almost laughed before catching himself and shook his head. The fool had said he was alone in this, but he was hiding something and surprisingly remained silent.

"Not at all," he said with disgust, "but he says he is alone." He suspected his wife, a Bajoran resident of the station, had somehow plotted with him to prevent the deactivation of the minefield, but his wife was yet to be questioned. "He really thought he could sneak around us and stop us. He should be used as an example against any other uprisings."

"I agree. Keep him under lock-up until his execution date," the Founder said. "You and Damar have done well with stopping him in time." She had no idea that he had nothing to do with capturing this Ferengi spy, that it was all Damar, but he would say nothing. "I will leave you alone now, Weyoun; I have a meeting with Odo." He watched her go before turning his attention back to the interrogation scene.

 _He's my boss' younger brother,_ Mia said through their link, making him scowl.

 _You shut me out for days and now you come through and remind me that he's family of your employer, which does NOT erase his crime._

 _If you don't release him in one week, I'll go to Odo and the Female Changeling herself, since you won't question the 'gods' when they agree with me,_ she replied insolently. _You're nothing but their puppet, after all._

Weyoun growled savagely. _Don't you DARE tell me my place, Amelia._ Every day, their relationship was on the verge of a permanent shatter.

 _I'm telling you because I was patient with you long enough, Weyoun. I will never agree with you on any of this, so I'm giving you a choice now: you're going to have to choose between the baby and I, and the Dominion you loyally serve. You can't have your new family and your gods at the same time anymore. This is something I myself can't do._

The link was broken once more, leaving Weyoun with an aching heart once more.

She had forced him to choose between his gods and her. She placed him in a position he could not allow himself to be in. Weyoun wished he could get away now so he could have his thoughts to himself. When Damar and his men left Rom for lock-up, the Cardassian passed by him and arrogantly spoke of his success with breaking the Ferengi, but Weyoun ignored him altogether, instead remembering back to the previous night when the Founder called him on about Mia.

 _"Tell me, Weyoun...how deep is your connection with the girl?"_

 _"Wh-why, Founder, I'm not trying to play you for a fool, but what makes you think I have a...connection with Amelia Sisko?"_

 _"It's no surprise to me, my loyal solid. I simply sensed an immensely strong connection between you and her, even from the conversation I walked in on by chance. But with her connection with Odo, it disturbs me greatly because she poses a threat to me. She loathes me greatly and isn't shy to voice it."_

 _"Surely, Founder, she wouldn't physically carry out her threats. A mere girl with no important status -"_

 _"She would very much, because how could you both assume it would possibly end well? She's the daughter of the enemy captain, and you are the Dominion's most loyal subject. Unless, in the event of time, we can change that..."_

~o~

He and Nerys had not spoken in a week because of their last conversation in over a week, now that he was always in the company of the female in his quarters. He had been spending more and more time with her and neglecting everything else all in the name of learning more about his people; they were one big ocean, the female explained, for "one drop becomes the ocean when one joins, and the ocean becomes a drop if one chooses to leave". They belonged as one, but curiosity was always in play to explore the world of solids. The shape-shifters were once solid themselves but evolved over time, she explained; neither of them had names because they were not their own individuals, even though Odo considered himself one.

Linking with the female had been...paradise, being the best word of choice. Nothing else in the world other than exchanging feeling, and just now he had showed her what it was like when humans mated, to give her a physical perspective of the solid nature. In the end, she was satisfied with her new insight but called it a "shadow of our own form of intimacy". It had been a long time since he had sexual intercourse - Arissa had been short-lived in his life but helped him build his self-confidence towards women - and then the mood was strained even more when the female detected his "regret" not doing it with Kira.

The very mention of her name set off the internal damage worse than the space station's power crippled.

She'd made him not link with _her,_ but what choice did he have? What did he have to say for himself, she'd asked. She'd broken into his quarters and accused him of letting everyone down: Rom who was now in a holding cell, Jake and Mia...even HER. She asked if any of them - or what they were trying to do - mattered anymore, and said he had just about handed the whole Alpha Quadrant to the Dominion for letting Rom get taken prisoner where his freedom - perhaps his life, too - was on the line. Of course she mattered - that both Sisko children and the future of the Alpha Quadrant mattered - but in the link, none of it did. She wouldn't understand; she wasn't like him and the Founder.

Nerys didn't need to say so aloud, but she'd lost him in both heart and soul - and their friendship - to the link and the Dominion in a matter of time. It was her manner of telling him that he'd chosen where his loyalties were: his people.

There were so many things Odo had wanted to tell her: he wanted to tell her he was sorry for betraying their group, especially Rom, but a simple sorry changed nothing. And Mia was waiting for her right time to give him a lecture, tell him he should "patch it up with her and soon before it's too late". For all he knew, it _was_ too late.

A price to pay with linking with the Female Changeling was losing track of time. He was supposed to meet with Dukat and Weyoun in a few hours, which turned out to be _three days ago._ How could he have lost track of time that way?! "Time doesn't matter," the female told him, joining her hand with his. "We are Changelings; we are _timeless_."

~o~

Odo never came to the board meeting, making him wonder what kept him away. He was a member of the Ruling Council, for goodness' sake. Unless the Founder herself was keeping him occupied, neutralizing him and making sure he didn't turn against them all, and he ought to thank her for that.

But how could he thank her for the "suggestion" regarding Mia?

He wouldn't go as far as to question her decision, but he was to take a sample of Mia when she wasn't aware of it, but how could he when their minds and hearts were joined for eternity? An eternity wracked with pain and a lack of happiness...

He pushed all thoughts of Mia aside for the time being and tried to concentrate on the gift Gul Dukat gave him not long ago: a Cardassian prize-winning piece of art crafted by his daughter. He had boasted on about her talent and acceptance by various directors on both Bajor and Cardassia, but Weyoun couldn't see why it was captivating to eyes laid on it. Dukat knew very little about his people lacking appreciation of art and beauty, so the details were blurred to Weyoun's eyes.

The doors swooshed open. Major Kira Nerys had requested - rather, demanded - that she speak to him now, and wouldn't take no for an answer. After whatever she wanted to discuss with him, if there was a way he could ask her about Mia... "You asked to see me, Major," Weyoun said casually, still looking at the portrait by Tora Ziyal.

"That's right -" she started only to be interrupted by his finger lifted.

"But first, tell me something: what do you think of this?" He gestured for the "masterpiece" in front of him on the long conference table.

"It's one of Ziyal's paintings -"

"I know who the artist is," he said impatiently. "Her father gave it to me. He claims it won some sort of prize on Cardassia."

He wasn't surprised that despite her pure loathing for Dukat, she shared his pride for his out-of-wedlock offspring. "Gul Dukat must be very proud, but why are you asking me instead of...Mia?"

Weyoun shrugged sadly. "She still refuses to see me, much less speak to me. I only wonder if it is...any good." He looked back up at her, seeing the confusion and sympathy. "I don't really know how to judge it. You see, Major, my people...lack a sense of aesthetics. We can't appreciate any form of art and beauty unless biologically with another being."

She actually felt pity for him. "That's too bad."

"I sometimes think so as well. After all, I don't see the danger in it. But, if aesthetics were truly important, the Founders would have included it in our genetic makeup."

"Or they made a mistake."

He almost erupted in a fury; when were these people going to stop calling the Founders ungodly and earthly? "Gods don't make mistakes," he said defensively. "I have had enough of that lecture from Mia; the last one I expected was to be you." She looked at him reproachfully. "Though," he said, quickly changing the topic, "sometimes, I think it would be nice to be able to carry a tune."

It brought back to the first night downstairs in Mia's old secret sparring room, when he watched her in black and battling invisible enemies with the Klingon and Jem'Hadar weaponry, then finished off the warm-up with that song from "beyond the sea"; if only he could learn to sing like that. He chuckled; it was so easy to remember the happier times instead of the unpleasant present ones. "So...what can I do for you, Major?" he asked.

Her posture stiffened along with her words. "It's about Rom."

"Ahhh, yes." Weyoun leaned back, narrowing his eyes. "The Ferengi saboteur." First Mia, now her "mother" whom Dukat's vain fantasies resided on.

"He has been in a holding cell for over a week," Kira said firmly, not afraid to get to the point; sometimes he could think that she and Mia were actually related. "And I was hoping you would consider releasing him."

He would not bend for Mia over both her brother and the terrorist himself, and he wouldn't bend for the major now. "Impossible," Weyoun stated frostily. "You can't release a man and THEN execute him; it makes no sense."

"Execute Rom?" she gasped. Foolish woman, did she think the Ferengi would get off THAT easily?

"He committed an act of _terrorism_ against the Dominion. Not only did he try to interfere with our efforts to take down the minefield, I have reason to believe that he is, in fact..." He stood up and walked around the table until he stood before her. "...a diabolical genius who came up with the idea of self-replicating mines in the first place. I'm afraid there's no getting around it, Major. He must be made an _example_ to all those who would oppose us so they would think twice before acting against us."

"He is MARRIED to a Bajoran citizen," Kira argued, making him roll his eyes. Of course, he couldn't care less.

"I'm well aware of it, and I AM willing to believe, for now, that his wife is in _no_ way a co-conspirator. Otherwise, treaty or no treaty, she will be obliged to share her husband's fate." He shook his head. "I'm sorry, Major, but the Dominion takes a dim view on terrorism. Your... _friend_ ," he spat, "must pay the price for his crime."

The fire in her eyes - clear despite his weak eyesight - was evident and unquenched, matching his own. "We'll see what the Bajoran government has to say about this," she threatened softly, making his scowl soften into a laugh, impressing him and not impressing him at the same time. She tried her best to ignore him as she walked around him to leave him and not deal with him any longer.

"I'm afraid their pleas will fall on deaf ears. Major," he called, making her turn back to see him pointing to Ziyal's painting. "Would this be more aesthetically pleasing if it were blue?"

She burst out laughing, her impassive shell gone. "You know, I wondered what Mia saw in someone like you. A man who can play his games and pretend nothing happened."

Weyoun sputtered furiously and started her way. "What did you say, Major?" he asked dangerously. Did she DARE to question his relationship with the woman carrying his child? Did she presume to make it her business just because she cared greatly about Mia?

"You say you adore her, you know she's having your baby, but you hurt her so much in the last few weeks that you gave her a damn good reason to shut you out so you would know what it felt to have your heart broken," Kira went on, enjoying every bit of it. "She's been through enough in her life, losing her real parents and gaining Ben and Jake in the end, then enduring gunfire at the wrong place at the wrong time, and so forth. Then allowing herself to fall for YOU only for all of this -" She motioned around her with both hands. "- to happen. If you want to make it right with Mia -"

"ENOUGH." He snarled like a beast in her face, baring his teeth and breathing in her face. He'd had enough of her insolence for this hour and any time. What had he been thinking in wanting her as an ally all this time? She might be Mia's friend, but now it was clear she was no friend of his. "Get out of my sight, or I shall - with Dukat - try you for treason and conspiracy with Rom," he warned.

Kira huffed, breathing right back; her breath was as hot as his was, but he wasn't affected. "Just know I know exactly what it's like to be betrayed by someone you love. Ask Odo if you get the chance."

He watched her go, pondering the surprising mention of Odo. Out of habit, he looked down at the art piece made by Ziyal. What did the major mean by bringing Odo in her "heartbreak"? Unless...

It lit up in his mind like the lights over his head as the words repeated in his mind: _"I know what it's like to be betrayed by someone you love..."_

 _Kira had feelings for Odo._

~o~

"Hey, sis, you okay?" Jake asked her as soon as he walked into her quarters, seeing her cooking a small Earth pasta by hand instead of getting something Cardassian from the replicator. She was thrifty nowadays as much as she hated it.

"Do I look okay?" she snapped. "Weyoun hurt you -"

"Aww, come on, I don't like it any more than you do, but you can't hate him for that forever," he protested. He still wasn't happy about his stories still being blocked, but at least Weyoun allowed him to let loose that one story regarding the suicide of the Bajoran Vedek, and Mia should have at least forgiven him for that - but she hadn't. She was angrier than ever nowadays. She paused with the stove and turned back to him with one hand behind her back even though she was only three months into her pregnancy.

"I won't forgive him mostly now because Rom is arrested, and from what Nerys and Quark told me, breaking him out is child's play, and what can we do to protect them if Daddy and the fleet are far from here? As well as the fact that the mine will be taken down in a week now, from Damar's latest report to Quark?"

Jake stopped. Wait, did she say...a week? Damar couldn't have boasted, right? His sister seemed to read his mind. "And no, he wasn't bragging about it. Add in the fact that we can't get to Odo now, and my baby daddy is making me worse than -"

He stalked in front of her and took her by the arms, shushing her. "Hey, you better be quiet before he hears you through your bond." She shrugged him off and snorted.

"He won't hear me right now because I shut him off for the time being." Jake flinched; that sounded worse than a break-up, if you asked him. "Point is, I can't take this anymore. We gotta find a way to get a message to Daddy and Starfleet, and we gotta tell Nerys and Quark once we have it."

Jake flashed a grin at the idea forming. "That won't be a problem because I know how we can do that." Involving one of Quark's regular customers who was preparing to travel for his mother's upcoming birthday.

~o~

"Our initial intelligence reports have been verified," Dukat was saying as he and Weyoun arrived back into his office. Damar's last report had two vast Dominion fleets over to the Starfleet station where Captain Sisko was reportedly stationed, and the imbecile had no answer as to why. And now Dukat had brought him in for full confirmation. "The Federation fleet IS on the move."

Weyoun was thoroughly pleased with the news - coupled with the minefield finally being taken down very slowly, yet the anti-graviton was yet to be set off in three more days to wholly destroy it - but tightened his lips. "Do we know the destination?"

"Yes. It would appear they are heading _here_."

Weyoun blinked. _Here_? Of course it made sense. "Oh, he knows," he mused, narrowing his eyes and smiling to himself. Oh, Captain Sisko knew that they were taking down the minefield and thought he could race with his fleet to stop them. Somehow the word had gotten out that the mines were being demilitarized, but how? "No matter," he confidently said to Dukat, and as an answer - for now - to himself. "We'll crush them."

"Yes, but in order to do that..." He picked up the PADD from the table. "...we'll have to pull a significant number of our ships off the front lines."

"Do it," Weyoun ordered. He wanted Mia's father and his allies to not win this war; he wanted Sisko and the others to see that they lost no matter their so-called heroic attempts to stop them. Once the minefield was down, the Dominion ships would be more than enough to take the places of any losses. He looked to the side with Dukat just as the door buzzed, and at the Gul's call, Damar came in - sporting a purplish bruise on his face. He looked his master's way, wanting to talk to him.

"Excuse me," Dukat said and joined his newly promoted Gul far away from Weyoun, but the ambassador could hear their conversation from long-range:

"I want your permission to arrest Major Kira," Damar whispered furiously, making Dukat frown.

"Kira? What about Ziyal?" Weyoun chuckled to himself; so the daughter finally figured out that her father was more than she thought he was. Old Daddy tried to get her to stand beside him and sent his right hand after her when he couldn't do it himself. He tried not to laugh harder when he imagined how Major Kira Nerys backlashed against the other Cardassian she despised as much as his master.

"She doesn't want to see you. When I insisted, the major...objected." Damar's answer was hesitant and hiding more than he was telling, and the Gul knew he wasn't telling him everything.

"What did you do to Ziyal?" he asked in a soft, deadly voice.

"I did _nothing!_ " Damar insisted.

"Then why did the major attack you? You must have done _something_ , threatened my daughter in some way, Damar. I told you to be TACTFUL."

"Excuse me," Weyoun spoke up, getting their attention, "don't you think resolving family squabbles can wait until AFTER we've won this war?" He smiled slightly at their faces clearly saying "how did you hear us from over there?"

"Weak eyes, good ears."

"Yes, yes, of course. You're right," Dukat answered.

"Then you're clear on what must be done?"

Dukat looked him down as he always did. "I'm going to call back enough ships to destroy the Federation fleet and hold this station."

He better do it; Weyoun knew his face was telling him exactly that. When he remembered what he said about family squabbles, perhaps he could fix it with Mia after the Dominion won, and she truly saw what he stood for. But in the meantime, he had to inform the Founder of the good news.

He found her conversing with Odo; from what he could tell, the other Changeling was intimidated by the Founder herself. She must be doing a good job with keeping him on his feet. He made his appearance. "Forgive me for intruding, but I have important news of the war."

She eyed him for a few seconds before turning her attention back to Odo. "Why don't you return to your quarters, Odo? I'll join you shortly." He looked lost, as though still thinking about whatever she'd told him; as if by means of assuring, she reached up to put her hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. Everything will be fine. I promise."

"I must say," Weyoun said as soon as he was gone, "you're doing a wonderful job with Odo."

"Meaning what?"

"Meaning that he's posed a potential threat to our plans, but you've seemed to...neutralize him quite nicely."

Her response caught him off-guard altogether. " _Neutralize Odo?_ " she repeated, offended. "Is _that_ why you think I am here? Odo is a Changeling, and returning him home to the Great Link means more to us than the Alpha Quadrant itself. Is THAT clear?"

Weyoun felt like he'd been smacked in the face at the mistake he made. Of course, how could he have forgotten how much Odo's people loved him despite their differences? "I meant no disrespect."

"Well, of course you didn't," she said, lightening up then. "You are what you are: a loyal subject of the Dominion. Now, you had news about the war..."

"Of course," he answered, relieved that she forgave him right away, but then he remembered the words: _loyal SUBJECT of the Dominion._ Once more, he dared to send her a message through their bond even if she didn't want to speak to him - and it was the one she'd told him all along.

 _Mia, love, could you have been...right all along?_

~o~

 _The solids must be broken of their freedom...the Founders must guide them, not pity them..._

Gods, Nerys...Mia...

His eyes were now opened as to what the Founder's intentions had been all along. How could he have done this? To himself? to THEM?

He had to find _her_ now, tell her himself even if she didn't want to speak to him. He would risk more devastation if he had to, and if not Nerys, then Mia would - also even if she had her own issues with the man she loved, the Vorta who had stood between him and the Female Changeling on the Promenade not long ago. The Vorta who looked up to him as he did to HER, sat with him on the Ruling Council as much as Odo hated it.

The Vorta who got Mia pregnant and emotionally hurt her in the end.

Just as Odo was about to be once more, but he had to say he deserved it, accepted it.

He couldn't beat to the lift, but before the doors closed, he caught the most hateful look she'd ever given him. Now he had to beat her to the floor to his quarters, but when he did -

"I have NOTHING to say to you."

"I understand that you're angry -"

"Oh, you BET I am angry!" she lashed, brusquely stopping to face him, forcing him to look into her eyes filled with anger, hatred, heartbreak...and betrayal. "Do you have any idea what's going on? Dukat is ordering down the minefield, the Federation is about to be overrun by Dominion reinforcements, and Weyoun - father of Mia's baby - has _ordered_ Rom's execution, and _where have you been?!_ If you're going to talk to me about the link, don't bother because I'm a solid and won't understand!"

"NERYS." He ground out her name and stopped her with his hand on her arm, which she jerked away. "I'm sorry."

"You're _sorry?_ That's all you have to say?"

"Yes!" he said desperately.

She snorted. "Well, let me tell you something, Odo: we are way, _way_ past sorry." She stormed off then, leaving him alone. A man walking alone once more. That was what he had always been. A loner, long before she was in his life.


	20. Sacrifices

**Now that the Federation is getting close to reclaiming DS9, relationships will take a hella more time to fix than returning home and driving the enemy away.**

Chapter Nineteen

Sacrifices

Dukat was chuckling as he surveyed the plan laid out on the datascreen table between himself, Damar, Weyoun and the Founder herself on the deck. "Well, it's a very clever strategy you have, Captain Sisko. But of course, I expect nothing less."

Weyoun studied the plan himself, seeing it all: Sisko thought he could order as many Federation fighters attack and run forward for the Cardassian ships - and only them - even when the Cardassians stood their ground and waited. "The captain is a very...clever man," he mused aloud, half to himself and half to the others, receiving a mock from Dukat about his poor eyesight.

"You can see this, can't you?"

"Of course I can," Weyoun snapped, ignoring the Founder's eyes on him.

"Well, then, perhaps you'd like to explain Captain Sisko's strategy to the Founder yourself?"

Weyoun seethed. "I could never hope to match your...eloquence," he challenged. Of course he would explain, but Dukat was the one who had originally decided to bring the plan to the table in the first place, displaying very clearly the obvious suicide mission to stop the dismantling of the minefield.

"True. Sisko," Dukat started, walking around the table, "is trying to provoke us into opening a hole...in our lines. He's DETERMINED to get here and stop us from taking down this minefield. And I plan to give Sisko his opening, and then..." He stood up before the Founder, hands held out on either side for emphasis on this particular part of the plan, but she was unimpressed as Weyoun was. "...close it on him." He clapped his hands together, smiling broadly.

"What about the minefields?" Weyoun asked impatiently. Now that Sisko and the Federation were on the move, the minefield was supposed to be detonated right before his very eyes.

"We should be done with them gone off in...eight hours."

"Good," the Female Changeling said proudly, nodding and taking her leave. Weyoun scoffed to himself; he was pleased with them finally being on schedule, but if eight hours wasn't completed, he would hold Dukat fully responsible for the failure he was.

"Eight hours," he reminded him, "and I WILL hold you to that, Dukat."

~o~

The news was going around the station that the Federation fleet was on the way here, and for awhile, she felt hopeful. Her father, the crew, and the rest of Starfleet coming here...but they might not make it in time before the minefield - the only protection they established before the wormhole - was destroyed. Because Rom was scheduled to be executed at the order of Weyoun, the man she loved only to be hurt in the end. But for awhile now, she was thinking of the message he left her just like leaving a transmission to listen to later: _Mia, love, could you have been...right all along?_

He had been conversing with the Female Changeling, called a "loyal subject of the Dominion" and nothing else. Praising him for obedience and nothing more, including no questions asked unless permitted. She terribly wanted to believe he was coming to his senses, but she wasn't sure now. She'd gone to Nerys after she tried to reason with him about Rom, but he'd been so stoic and irreversible with the decision made...like a stone-cold murderer. He might not kill Rom with his own hands, but the fact he was going to HAVE it done to this Ferengi, a man married to a Bajoran woman who was a colleague of Mia's and was the father of Jake's best friend who was a cadet under her father...

 _"I'm well aware of all of this, Mia, and I had enough of your friend Kira to not hear anymore of this nonsense from you!"_

 _"Well, good for you, because Rom has a son who is my brother's best friend, or have you forgotten the fact you'll be a father yourself in a matter of months?"_ He'd said nothing, face twisting that she'd dared use his own upcoming parental status against him. _"You'll be ordering the death of a loving husband and father."_

 _"A father who attempted to terrorize the residents of this station,"_ he'd growled, leaning down in her face. She was beginning to become afraid of him; he was turning into a djinn with purple eyes instead of the man she had grown to love and carried his child. _"I've said this to the major, and I will say it again: there is no getting around this situation so easily. Rom will die for his crime, and I have reason now to believe that he was not alone. Believe me, Mia, I will find out WHO in a matter of time, but if I ever find out_ you _were involved..."_

She'd backlashed then. _"How could you accuse me of terrorism?!"_

He'd laughed then. _"Why, because you so bravely defend your employer's brother the way you do. But I do hope, for both our sakes,"_ he'd said venomously, face tightening once more, _"that you had no active part in it. I would hate to order your death, as well, my love."_

Mia had been more than ready to strike him again, but before she could, he'd grabbed her wrist and pulled her close to him. No, she didn't want him that way, not with how their relationship was deteriorating when the Dominion was succeeding with turning her against him. His arm snaked around her and held her as he leaned down and kissed her after weeks of rejection.

She had - for the moment - melted into the long-neglected kiss that should have swept her heart off its regular pattern like it always did, but she wasn't stupid; it was him trying to calm her down and subdue her. He still loved her as much as she knew, deep down, she still loved him, but not like this! He was kissing her and holding her right now because he didn't want to hear anymore of her objections and defenses of a "terrorist", and angry that she still hadn't forgiven him. That made two of them.

Weyoun had smashed his lips against hers, trying to stick his tongue in, but she forced her teeth together to prevent him from dominating her any further...and then she felt as though her brain was turning into a cloud, fuzzy and drifting elsewhere. The last thing she remembered was falling into Weyoun's arms before her world grayed and darkened until she woke up sometime later and in her own bed. The bastard must have melded her mind so he could put her into a sleep to keep her mouth shut!

Thankfully, she didn't see or hear from him since then, until the message through their bond when he questioned her about the Founder's "praise" of his status as a Dominion servant. She wanted to say yes, but after all those times before, perhaps he ought to figure it out for himself. Or if not, then perhaps in his next incarnation as much as it was so selfish and painful to mention.

Or maybe she would end up regretting saying that to herself.

"I heard that the Federation was being ambushed," Leeta whispered to her, Jake and Kira in the bar, but Quark behind them said another altogether.

"I heard two Cardassians say it was completely destroyed."

Everyone scoffed at his side. "Don't believe everything you hear," Jake said.

"Jake's right; Sisko will get here," Nerys agreed. "But the question is..." She swallowed. "...will he get here soon enough?"

"I really hope so," Mia whispered, reaching over to cup her hand and then Jake's with both her own hands. "Dad has seven hours before they detonate the mines and bring in those damned reinforcements through the wormhole."

"Sis is right," Jake answered. "We gotta stop them."

Leeta was the more doubtful of the group when she asked how, but Nerys was the one even more despite trying to be hopeful and come up with a plan of action. "If only we could...cut off the power supply to the main computer? Shut down the whole station?"

Quark scoffed. "Oh, great. That would put me out of business altogether."

Mia glared at him. "Boss, as much as I adore you, would you think about the safety of the entire Alpha Quadrant for ONE SECOND?" Both of the other women snickered at her, and Jake held up one hand for silence.

"She's right, but it would also keep them from emitting the mines."

So shutting the station's system down was the answer, but it begged the question as to HOW. "A bomb," Kira answered. "But leave what _kind_ to me. It will be crude, but effective."

"The main computer is in the central core," Quark whispered harshly. "It's heavily guarded; it's too risky. You'll never make it. And Mia, your dabo table awaits." She was shocked that he would pull her away from something so important, but he was right; she had work to do. And the others nodded for her to join him.

However, the sooner she reached the currently empty table, she looked up in time to see _Damar_ and two other Cardassians lead the three away from their table and out of the bar: Leeta, Nerys _and_ Jake. The sinister smiles on their faces told her it wasn't good news at all. Horrified, Mia turned to Quark and saw that he'd witnessed everything she had.

His other favorite dabo girl - and sister-in-law - the major who was like a mother to her, AND her brother were being arrested for conspiracy with Rom...and would likely be executed.

And once again at _Weyoun's_ order.

~o~

Suspicions confirmed: Rom had NOT been alone in his attempted sabotage of the deflector. Major Kira, of course; how could he not see that coming? She absolutely despised Dukat, the Dominion - and Weyoun, now that he saw they would never be friends - and her reasons for coming to him to begin with regarding her partner-in-crime was to release him so he could finish what he started.

So, his bride Leeta WAS indeed a co-conspirator, after all. Weyoun smiled to himself; now she would indeed die alongside her husband. To think of it as a perfect ending in which the couple would perish together for their treacherous actions...

And _Jake Sisko_ played a part in it, too. _Oh, Mia, you little -_

He stopped his train of thought right there. Could Mia truly have known - or at least had her involvement, too? Damar hadn't brought her in when she'd obviously been working in the bar as he took away her brother, the major and her employer's sister-in-law. He thought about voicing his suspicions to prove he wasn't disloyal, but he stopped himself because if Mia WAS guilty of being involved in this plot, he still loved her and wanted to protect her at all costs...like he swore to her long ago before their worlds began to tear.

Was he defecting now, having these thoughts? He tried not to worry now, not with her father and his fleet on the way and the minefield task on the verge of completion.

But a bad timing was Dukat helping himself to some kanar, making Weyoun sneer and fold his arms across his chest. "War is such...thirsty work," he was saying. "Don't you agree?" By this time he'd poured a _second_ glass, and Weyoun narrowed his eyes.

"Perhaps if you didn't talk so much, your throat wouldn't be so _dry_ ," he said coyly, laughing when the Gul did.

"Cardassians _do_ like to talk."

"No." Weyoun made a face and turned away from the offered second glass, leaving Dukat to toast by himself - and to their obvious inevitable triumph. To the "conquerors of the Federation and the Klingons", but they had yet to free their Dominion reinforcements from the wormhole. "Aren't you being a bit...premature?"

"I don't think so," Dukat countered. "Not with twenty-eight hundred Dominion ships waiting to come through that wormhole."

"And those ships won't be here for another five hours; need I remind you that a lot can happen in five hours?" Dukat could boast all he wanted, but he got too far ahead of himself. The other man groaned and poured himself another kanar; he was going drunk out of his mind during this time and would lose the Founder's interest for sure.

"Tell me, Weyoun, have you ever been diagnosed as...anhedonic?"

Weyoun let loose a laugh at being called a word that meant he lacked the ability to experience pleasure; he dared to mock his desires that no one - not even Dukat - would know of...except the Founder, when she forced him to do what he'd done to Mia after their last confrontation. "You think I'm incapable of inexperiencing _joy_? Because I'm cautious?"

"We haven't defeated the Federation by being _cautious,_ " Dukat argued after another drink, making him snap.

"We haven't defeated it YET, and even if we do, it's only the beginning. Holding a prize as vast as the Federatoin isn't going to be easy. It's going to require an enormous number of ships, a massive occupation army...and constant vigilance." Conquering a whole planet, by means, and that very hint certainly delighted Dukat, who leaned forward and hissed. Weyoun cracked a similar grin. "As I'm sure you looked forward to occupying _Bajor_. And we all know what a disappointment THAT was."

"Ah, ah, ah ah." Dukat held up one finger to stop him. "On Bajor, I merely implemented policy, not made it. If I had, things would have turned out quite differently."

"If you ask me, the key to holding the Federation without outright taking a planet in the Alpha Quadrant is...Earth." _Mia's home planet - and her family's._ "Our first step is to eradicate its population if there is going to be an organized resistance before us."

Occupying Earth was the most logical compared to directly taking Bajor, because Earth was the sanctuary of Starfleet and the base. To conquer any resistence against the Dominion would be to wipe out all of planet Earth and take every weapon they could get their hands on - and that would mean having Mia and the baby by his side, if he could somehow keep them both away from the eyes of the Founder herself, but then there was what she was planning with the blood sample he'd drawn from Mia while she slept under his spell...

"You can't do that."

Weyoun raged, whipping around and demanding, "Why not? You dare question me?"

"Yes, because a true victory is to make your enemy see that they were wrong to oppose you in the first place. To FORCE them to acknowledge your greatness."

Of course, to force them against their will until they weasel their ways around and - "Then you'll kill them."

"Only if necessary."

Dukat sighed and sat down, staring at his now empty glass. "Perhaps the biggest mistake of my life was that the Bajoran people still refused to appreciate how lucky they were to have ME as their liberator. I protected them in so many ways, cared for them as though they were my own children. But to this day, is there a _single statue_ of me on Bajor?"

"I would guess not," Weyoun replied, wondering how anyone - besides Bajor - would want an egotistical, self-delusioned imbecile like Dukat as their "shepherd"; that word made him laugh, even more when Dukat picked up the baseball left behind by Captain Sisko - oh, how he kept his promise that he'd be back - and praised him for his perceptiveness and intelligence only to refuse to give any respect in return. This made Dukat scowl.

"You find THAT amusing?!"

"Not at all." But he could barely contain himself. "I find it...fascinating." Actually, fascinating _and_ amusing, that Dukat actually believed in himself despite his foolproof ideals. History would prove it again.

~o~

The doors to his quarters swished open; Odo fumed. How DARE she come in as she pleased! If she sensed his disgust, she either ignored or simply didn't care. "I have news, Odo. Our battle with the Federation fleet is going well."

"Even when there are people out there fighting and dying; people who used to be my friends," he said bluntly. "I wish I could share your sense of...revenge. Against the solids because they hunted our people down centuries ago."

She backpedaled from him at his outburst. "They're _solids_ , Odo," she answered angrily. "The link means more to you than they do."

He whirled around and glared down at her; how could she be so heartless and callous like Dukat and his first officer? And Weyoun? "If the link means more, these people still hold a place in my heart despite our differences both on the inside and out. I can't quite believe the link is superior to them." He walked away from her, but she wasn't letting this go easily.

"You asked me for _clarity,_ Odo, and I gave it to you. Why won't you accept it? Unless it has to do with...Major Kira." He avoided her gaze the best he could, refusing to answer her. "Despite your strong feelings for her, she doesn't deserve your loyalty. You cannot allow a solid to deny your rightful place in the Great Link! I WON'T permit it!"

Odo jerked his head up at the even more powerful refusal in her voice. There was more. "What are you saying?"

"The major has been arrested."

He felt his heart drop to the floor - no Changeling possessed any vital organs as solids did, but he could still feel it all - and now he wanted to lunge for her, no longer caring he was risking another punishment from the link. "On what charge?" he demanded.

"That hardly matters," the Founder said calmly, emotionlessly. "What matters is that she will be found guilty...and sentenced to death."

Odo shook his head in protest; he couldn't believe that Kira Nerys, the woman he loved even if she hated him now for his neglection of her and their friends for this horrible creature in front of him, was going to be executed...for conspiracy to sabotage with ROM. "Her death will be your salvation, Odo. Link with me. By embracing the clarity, it is the only thing that will give you peace."

He pulled away from her. "No, I won't do it," he said strongly. "She was right about you, and I won't do it."

The female hissed at his refusal and his back turning to her. "You CANNOT help her, Odo - or any of your solid friends. No matter how much you want to help them, it is too late."

~o~

The _Defiant_ had broken through all the lines, according to Damar, and was now on its way here. "Order pursuit at once," Weyoun ordered. He wanted to see Captain Sisko taken down - _I'm sorry, Mia, but your father, as much as your brother and friends, is a threat to all of our plans_ \- since he was alone, but Dukat wanted something better than having the captain and his lone crew pursued from their line of vision, away from the site of the station.

"The _Defiant_ is no match for this station. If Sisko wants to commit suicide, I say let him."

~o~

Her brother, the major and Leeta were now with Rom, but it was a matter of time before they were officially found guilty with him. Supposed, because they didn't kill Rom straightaway, perhaps once they destroyed the minefield, they would execute all of them as a celebration - and have MIA perform for them as a dancer like when they first took over Deep Space 9. She felt sick. She wanted to go back to her quarters and cry, but before she could leave, Quark stopped her.

"We can't let my brother, your brother and the rest die," he whispered to her, "so I have a plan: do you know how to make hasperat soufflé?"

She was on the verge of laughing and gasping when he had to ask her if she knew how to bake a Bajoran dish with the spicy burrito-like hasperat, until he further explained to her that it was his way of attempting to get into the security room, which Odo had not been in for some time, and was currently overseen by a Cardassian soldier. Mia had her hands behind her back, the hypospray safely tucked away into her lavender skirts, keeping her face straight. Quark held out the covered dish of soufflé as he told the guard that it was "lunch for Major Kira".

The Cardassian gave a nasty smirk. "Major Kira has already been served."

"Bull," Mia hissed, baring her teeth. "Unless you starved her and the others."

"Precisely," Quark added, winking to her and then turning back. "And I can only imagine the _slop_ you've been serving her. What I have here -" He held up the dish again. "- is hasperat soufflé, just the way the major likes it."

The man scoffed and shook his head. "Bartender, _dancer girl_ ," he sneered, setting her nerves on fire, "this is a jail, not a _hotel_. The major will eat what the other prisoners eat."

Mia stepped forward. "Do you even know who I am?" Quark looked her way with a mixture of caution and encouragement to get them to Kira and the rest.

The man was uninterested when he answered her. "Gul Dukat's concubine."

"That's right, and since he's made me important as he is, I suggest you allow us to bring this food unless you want me to involve the Gul himself."

"I can't do that," he said, standing up. "However, I CAN take the tray to her...after I examine it."

She and Quark stiffened; all their hard work and planning about to be discovered. This guy was too suspicious, and she felt her heart beat fast again with her increased anxiety. And Quark was beginning to feel the same way as her. "Uhhh...is that really necessary?"

"Lift the lid."

"Okay, if you insist." Quark uneasily set the tray down and lift the lid, showing their masterpiece together. "See? Hasperat soufflé, just like I said. And please, don't poke. It's very...delicate." But the guy was already taking a utensil and probing the crusty surface - Mia's cue to grab the hypospray with the agility of a ninja and knocked the bastard out. He fell face-down into the exquisite delicacy. "Now you've ruined it," Quark joked, nodding for her to lead the way so they could find the jail cell their friends were in.

"All right, nobody move!" Quark shouted from the doorway, aiming both phasers at the two Jem'Hadar pacing before both force fielded cells - Kira and Leeta in one, Rom and Jake in the other.

"Brother! I knew you would come!" Rom exclaimed, and then Jake stood up, jumping over beside him when he saw his sister.

"Mia!"

"Hello, little brother," she answered with a cocky grin he returned. Quark greeted his younger brother before turning his attention back to the two Jem'Hadar raising their phaser rifles.

"Now, everyone, just keep calm and do not move, understand?" They obeyed but still kept their weapons raised, before Quark gestured to the one on the right. "You, open the holding cells." The guards looked at each other as though confused because Quark ordered them to stay where they were. "I said, _open the holding cells._ "

Mia stepped up to him and whispered, "You just told them not to move."

"Right. Nobody moves, except you," he said to the Jem'Hadar on the right. "Now, do as I say and open the cells."

Mia should have seen it coming when they glanced at each other with one particular look far beyond baffle - and they proved it when they raised their weapons and prepared to fire on both her and Quark...

...before phaser fire from her boss, mingled with his shouts, sent them both dead on their backs in front of the eyes of the prisoners.

"Quark, you did it," she whispered, amazed her boss finally killed someone that she knew of. She always knew he had it in him beyond trading and business. But he seemed in shock for taking two lives that she had to take a phaser and shoot the control panel for the force field, freeing Rom and Leeta - who ran into each other's arms - Kira, and Jake, who ran over to envelope her in a tight embrace.

"How's the baby doing after all of this?" he asked when they broke apart. Mia laughed that he had to ask at a time like this.

"We're both fine," she answered.

"I'd kiss you, Quark," Nerys said as she took the guards' weapons, "but there isn't time." She tossed one to Rom. "We have to find a way to shut down the power to the main computer."

"I can do it," Rom volunteered, and at his wife's protest, added, "That is, if we can make it to the central command center without being killed."

"All right, Rom, you're with me. The rest of you..." She meant Mia and her brother." "...stay out of sight."

"Will do," Jake answered. He grabbed Mia's wrist and took her out of the area, but she had to stop and drag a still-stunned Quark out of there.

~o~

The prisoners escaped! The terrorist and his wife, the major and his beloved's brother - _Did YOU have anything to do with this?!_ he fumed through their bond, getting a smirk from her, which enraged him further. _Not only did you betray the Dominion, but you betrayed ME for a last time!_

 _Yes, I helped my brother and friends escape, my love. Who said anything about betraying you? The Dominion is no favorite of mine, or did you purposefully forget that?_ Mia answered back. _Work has to be done. We're on different sides, after all. Which makes it difficult since we might never resolve this mess anytime soon before the baby is born._

Weyoun's heart had been broken numerous times with hers, and now was greater than before. She had chosen her family and friends of renegades over him and his Founders and their allies, choosing to keep their baby to herself. Perhaps it was for the best since their differences got the best of the everlasting love they shared. Weyoun had hopelessly prayed she would see that she belonged someplace better than a mere game girl, daughter of the enemy - but he was wrong.

Perhaps they were better off in separate places for the time being. This war had to be won, and he had a duty and oath to honor, and that meant breaking the news to the Founder and Odo, get them both safely as he could not risk Mia and her terrorist group coming after them. Odo might be her cherished friend, but the Female Changeling was a pure dislike.

"Forgive the intrusion," he said apologetically, "but Major Kira, the Ferengi saboteur and the rest of their little terrorist group have escaped from the holding cells. For your own protection, I must ask you to come with me."

Odo did not breathe a word, his face pure surprise and - hopeful? Relieved? That the woman he had feelings for was free once more? Weyoun wasn't sure how to understand why he possibly loved a woman like Kira Nerys, but he wouldn't question him. The Founder's eyes narrowed. "I want them caught," she said.

"They will be," Weyoun promised, "but in the meantime, you both will be safer in Ops."

"You go," Odo said coldly to the Founder, "but I will be fine remaining here."

The Founder said nothing to him, but when she turned to leave, Weyoun saw she was utterly disappointed and...furious. Whatever it was, he sensed it had to do with Kira and Mia. He had it in him to look back at Odo and allow a scowl to form. He was making a grave error remaining behind. Now Weyoun could not ask him about him and the major in hopes of making up for it with Mia.

~o~

She and Jake remained in her quarters, since Weyoun didn't have it in him to send someone to her. She and her brother barely spoke, and she was in silence as she finally opened herself to see Weyoun's intentions when the minefield was destroyed and her father's fleet made it. _You want Daddy to be here in time to watch it happen._

 _Correction: Dukat wants him present._

 _But you want my father gone. You can't take him anymore,_ she accused, her heart breaking at the revelation that he was truly done with her father. _I knew you and him would never accept each other the way you both accept me and the baby. As much as I tried not to think about it._ She felt her throat tighten, and her body quiver with the clenching of muscles like she did when his predecessor died; no matter the incarnation, he was still the same Weyoun.

 _Does this mean you still...love me?_

She was taken aback by the question when he saw her thoughts. _Of course I do, but I can't forgive you for everything that's happened, as much as I want to...that I should._

He sighed; his head must be bowing, if he wasn't before his Founder right now. _I'm before her, and the deflector is about to be set off soon. I wish you could see it when it is done. See the glory in it all..._

 _And that is where we differ, Weyoun. We will ALWAYS differ, but our hearts and souls are the same,_ she said sadly. _But we can't be together as long as our affiliations are fighting a war. And if you kill my father, I will never forgive you for sure, for taking away my family. He took me in when the father before him - his best friend and comrade - died at the same time as Jennifer Sisko._

 _His wife._ Weyoun's answer was plain and sad. He was nodding, and this time he was the one to close off the bond. The last emotion she sensed was his soul shattering at her rebuff was despair and bitterness...and even more determined to watch everything he was against fall to ruin. Mia cried now, covered her face in her hands - wept for herself, her indifferent lover, their child, her family and friends and the whole Alpha Quadrant - and let her brother hold her as she mourned for the upcoming destruction of the minefield.

~o~

Jem'Hadar and Cardassian personnel alike ambushed her and Rom at every corner as they fought making it to the main computer, finding themselves in the cargo bay along the way - only for it to now end with _Bajoran phaser fire,_ according to Rom. Ferengi ears were as good as a Terran feline's. For a moment, Kira wondered why Dominion troops would use Bajoran weaponry...

...until she glimpsed around the corner and saw ODO and his security men opening fire. The bodies of several Cardassians and Jem'Hadar lay smoldering before them. "Never underestimate the element of surprise," Odo said with a small smile she had difficulty returning. What she wanted to know was -

"What made you change your mind?" she asked as he escorted her and Rom down the hallway to an access conduit - the very same one Rom tried to get in and out only to fail. They had less than forty minutes to shut down the computer, but it would have to do. They were running out of time. Odo was to distract the Dominion security and create enough false alarms to keep them busy.

"The link," Odo answered softly, "was paradise...but it appears that I am not ready for paradise."

She wanted to smile finally that he came to his senses, but he was already closing the entrance for her to follow Rom. They would have plenty of time for this, but deactivating the computer came first.

Rom was struggling, feeling like he wouldn't make it, so now he was separating the power to the station's weapons array. Without the weapons, they wouldn't detonate the mines. He agreed and got to work on the ODN relays away.

However, by the time he made the final cut...

"Oh, no."

"What?" Nerys asked, although she felt the icy fear around her heart and knew what he was implying.

"We were too late."

 **I thought it suitable that Mia be with Quark to rescue their friends. :) Which means Ziyal is alive and well, but what is in store for both her and her father?**

 **It seems our lovers won't be together again anytime soon. :( But it's not the end for them, so like I said before, don't lose hope.**


	21. Time to Say Good-Bye

**Chapter shorter than usual, but the goal WAS to keep it short and sweet. :)**

Chapter Twenty

Time to Say Good-Bye

Damar had announced the last of the mines were neutralized. The field was ready for the long-awaited moment. Weyoun could smell victory approaching. The _Defiant_ was too late to stop them - as were the renegades aboard this station. It would be pointless to argue with Mia now that they were close. But once Sisko and his fleet were out of the picture as soon as he witnessed his failure, he could attempt to persuade the Founder that Mia Sisko should be handed to him as his...

He stopped right there. Bride? Why did that come up given their current predicament? Of course he wanted to marry Mia, but things were in such a dilemma...he had to force himself back to concentration at the present.

"We're ready to detonate, sir." Dukat smiled as he shared the Vorta ambassador's thirst for victory, nodding his approval. Without hesitation, Damar set to work on the controls himself.

"FIRE!"

Weyoun could have sworn his eyes gleamed with the flash that swept across the screen, displaying all activity as the cluster of mines was permanently discharged. _Momentous...a day to remember._ He didn't care if Mia heard or not, replied or not. All he could feel was stimulation through all areas of his body as he shared proud laughter of achievement with the Cardassians - even the Founder managed one of the rarest smiles she could manage.

 _You son of a bitch, you and your friends there will find something else to laugh about._

He stopped his laughter and gritted his teeth against Mia's sneer. _If I have something to say to you, I wish I knew what it was,_ he returned. _We are on the verge of winning this war; you'll wholly see that soon enough._ He tuned her out in time to hear the Founder order the contact of their Dominion reinforcements in the wormhole - _at long last! We will finally get those reinforcements -!_

"Sir," Damar said suddenly, "the _Defiant_ is heading for the wormhole."

Well, that was one more pest to deal with. He reopened the link with Mia so she would hear, and this time he didn't care. "Destroy it."

 _I warned you; my father and the others' deaths are on you. The baby will never know you for sure._ Mia was hurt, but he wished he could soothe her if only he had to do what was necessary - and the Founder herself present. If only Odo was here, too.

Sadly, the task couldn't be done. "What's wrong, Damar?" Dukat asked impatiently.

"The weapons are off-line!"

Major Kira and her terrorist group... _and what about you, my dear?_ Weyoun seethed. _Where are you in this?_

 _Believe me, I'm not with her and Rom. I'm someplace much safer that only YOU know but don't have the balls to tell anyone else, not even Dukat - or the Founder._ "Perfect" timing when the Founder herself was walking past him and standing in front of Dukat when he, too, was raging with Weyoun.

However, things got "better" when the wormhole opened and let loose the _Defiant_...but no Dominion ships.

"Our reinforcements should have been right behind them!" Dukat exclaimed.

"No, sir; there's no sign of them," Damar said as he ran the scans.

Weyoun was flabbergasted; how could thousands of Dominion ships vanish in the wormhole just like that - and against _one little starship_?! "That's impossible; check our listing posts in the Gamma Quadrant!" There HAD to be some left that didn't enter the wormhole -

"They're not there either." _DAMN IT ALL, THEY ENTERED THE WORMHOLE!_

And suddenly, their surroundings were wracked with fire and tremors shaking them all nearly off their feet. Obviously, the _Defiant_ had opened fire on them! They were alone and took a Plan B action - and that was attacking them off-guard, attempting to force them out of their "precious home". What choice did they have now when their reinforcements had vanished out of the blue?

The weapons would not be back online for awhile, and two hundred enemy ships had broken through their lines and heading this way. They were outnumbered and had to get out of here in order to save their own skins. Weyoun clasped his hands together as it dawned on him that victory would have to wait a little longer than expected. "Time to start packing."

The Founder was clearly just as upset as he was. "Contact our forces in the Alpha Quadrant," she ordered, abandoning Weyoun's side. "Tell them to pull back to Cardassian territory. It appears this war is going to take a lot longer than expected," she said in a horrified Dukat's face; victory was almost in their grasp. Weyoun wanted to smile that he'd outmatched his friend-foe, but settled on scowling as he would.

"We'll meet you at Airlock Five." He'd warned him that he'd gotten too far ahead in his egotism, and second time around proved Dukat was an example of "the higher the rise, the farther the fall". He marched away without waiting for an answer.

However, something stopped him from going to the airlock straight away.

~o~

 _"All Dominion personnel, proceed to airlocks four, seven and twelve for evacuation."_

The Dominion was leaving the station. Mia felt overjoyed, jumping up and down with Jake for the hell of it - but then that joy was replaced with a knowing horror she had not felt since the Dominion and Cardassia first reclaimed the station and long before that, with the death of the fourth Weyoun. "Jake, I have to go." She dashed for the doors to her quarters and pressed the button to open.

He stared after her in surprise. "What, you're going to HIM?" he exclaimed. "What are you going to do then?" He followed her, not caring that he would get in trouble along the way. She didn't want him to come, but he was persistent.

"If I don't make things right with him now that he and his people are leaving, I'll regret it forever if something happens to him while we're separated for who knows how much longer."

He might not be there for her when the baby was born, but neither knew that for sure. Panting with every breath she took to her lungs, Mia dashed through every hallway and corridor, screaming at the top of her lungs: "Weyoun! _Weyoun!_ " She was beginning to lose hope by the time she reached the Promenade, where several Jem'Hadar and Cardassians were going in the opposite direction towards the airlocks. Her brother was still behind her, but she was beginning to lose hope.

"WEYOUN!"

"Mia!"

There he was, standing at the end of the lower level where she was, and thank God he was alone instead of that vile Female Changeling with him. "Oh, Weyoun!" she cried, picking up her skirts and running his way, throwing her arms around him and allowing him to spin her around. When he set her down, she gently took him by the ears and brought his face down to passionately kiss hers for one last time. At that moment, nothing else mattered - not the past, not her brother or the possibility that his Founder and their Cardassian allies or any of the soldiers would see them - and the tears were pouring hot down her cheeks, which he soon tasted and broke the kiss to look down with a mournful loss in his beautiful lavender eyes.

"My love...I'm so sorry." His hand on her cheek was very reassuring, but he had to go soon. The Founder needed his protection and could very much be searching for him now. "Mia, I can't leave without telling you. A simple sorry won't change it, and I wish I had the power to change what transpired here between us - and you," he added, looking at Jake, "but I can't. But perhaps someday soon, if not now."

Mia felt the absolute honesty in his words; he wasn't deceiving this once. She looked behind her when Jake spoke. "Yeah, someday. You really hurt my sister, and a lot of other people. I'm still mad at you for not allowing anyone to read my stories, but I think with more time we'll move on from that since I'll have them out eventually," he said with a little smile that Weyoun returned. For only a moment, Mia was shocked because Jake was too forgiving for his own good sometimes...but he was right; she couldn't stay mad at Weyoun forever. She'd hurt him, too, shutting him off their bond all those times.

"No matter how much I said I hated you...I can't," she whispered, looking into his eyes again and seeing them glassy but not spilling tears. "Because I love you."

He nodded, pursing his lips together. "I love you, too, Mia." He looked behind him when the announcer made the reminder of the evacuation to the airlocks. "I can't bear any thought of losing you and the child..." He reached between them and rested his palm flat on her slightly rounded abdomen. "...but I must go. We will never be apart...not ever." He leaned down and kissed her one last time before letting her go in time for Jake to come up behind her. "Take care of her, Jake," Weyoun said with another smile and reaching around to lay his hand on her brother's shoulder again, making her brother laugh and shrug it off playfully, all hostilities forgotten.

"You bet I will. Now you think you better get going now?"

Weyoun gave her one last kiss before he left them both in the direction he came in. Once he vanished, Mia turned and fell into her brother's embrace.

~o~

"Out of the way!" he shouted as he parted through the crowd at Airlock Five. "Make way for the Founder."

He noted how distant she was ever since the announcement of evacuation - as well as Odo's absence. He wasn't sure why Odo couldn't come with them, to join with the rest of his people, so he had to asked the Female Changeling. "What about Odo? Is he coming with us?"

"No," she said simply, "but he _will_ join us. It's only a matter of time."

Of course a matter of time. Weyoun bowed his head and waited for her to go inside first. As soon as she was gone, he took one last look at the place he had wanted to call home as long as he remained here, wanted to become closer to his lover and their unborn child only for their separate sides to try and part them - and one certain Changeling he called a god who made him feel an indescribable warmth not like how Mia made him feel, but Odo was nothing like the female he served. One day there might be a time for that to change.

 _One day, my beloved,_ he promised before joining the Founder and the rest.

~o~

Cheers of victory and happiness - even though the fighting was far from over - roared throughout the Promenade as their beloved Captain Sisko and his fellow heroes returned home. The Dominion-Cardassian reign over their home was over now, and Sisko intended to keep it that way. He put on his smile for all to see, the others trailing behind him. He'd had enough of dealing with capturing a Vorta from a desolate planet and slaughtering his white-deprived Jem'Hadar to save not only HIS life but only Benjamin's and the rest of the men, more than enough enemy ships firing at them and killing more than enough of their friends and comrades, and now all he wanted to do was settle back home...

...and the two faces he had not seen in months were back into his life once more.

"Jake!" He laughed as he took his son into his arms; his grandfather would be happy to know he was safe and sound, as was the other most important face Joseph loved as much as she was one of them. "Oh, Mia!" She burst out crying with laughter when she danced through the crowd and threw her arms around him and hugged him tight.

"Daddy," she sobbed. "I missed you so much. We all did, and I'm glad you came."

He had a feeling more than she let on happened, but that would have to wait; he'd just returned home and didn't want any problems for awhile. But he had to know: "Did Dukat...?"

"No." She shook her head, but the tears were still coming. "He never hurt me; it was all to make me an example against everyone else. And your grandchild is fine, too." She took his hand and placed it on her stomach; she was a little over three months now, and the baby was getting stronger. All the time he was separated from both his children, Ben wondered how both his daughter and grandchild were doing, wishing that monster Dukat didn't force himself onto her - and did he ever find out she was pregnant? Not that it mattered now, since he was long gone with the rest of the Dominion.

Or was he?

Not that it mattered now, once again. "It's good to see you, Captain," Constable Odo said, accepting a handshake.

"It's good to see you, Constable," Benjamin said with a beam. "It's so good to see all of you."

He looked around him, seeing Nog tell his parents that he was promoted to an engineer and that his father would not only be working _with_ him, but FOR him. Quark was telling Miles O'Brien the holosuites were on and that he and Julian were more than ready for them. Worf and Dax were reunited once again, in time to continue with the planning of their wedding. One more thing: General Martok owed him a barrel of bloodwine for the first man to set foot on the station and celebrate.

Another thing caught his eye: Mr. Garak and Tora Ziyal were embracing...or rather, more than embracing. Ziyal, Dukat's daughter, was bringing him down for a more than passionate kiss for all to see. Ah, so those two were finally making it happen. Benjamin walked over with both his children by his side and greeted her. "Ziyal, so good you chose to remain here on Deep Space 9. But what about your father?" The last thing he heard about her was that she was going to school on Bajor, so how did she manage to return here?

He saw how her face fell. "He's been taken into custody. He chose to stay behind for me, and got himself into trouble for it. He's currently in one of the holding cells." A tear rolled down her cheek. "Captain, my father's done terrible things, but I really thought he could become a changed man. I thought we would be happy, that he'd be a better leader than before. I want to hate him so much, but I can't."

This was a daughter who loved her father despite their differences. Dukat was still here, but he had been _arrested?_ It was almost too good to be true, so Ben had to see him now. "I'll be right back, you two," he told Jake and Mia, kissing her cheek and patting his back before making way for the holding cells downstairs.

 **Yup, for all of you who cried at Ziyal's death, cheers for her being alive and now starting to be with Garak, whom my friend and fellow author Irishchick1982 admitted to having a crush on. :D More fun to come before things go downhill again.**


	22. Beating Hearts

**So today we got matters of the heart to deal with. :) Reviews appreciated as ever.**

Chapter Twenty-One

Beating Hearts

It was his first night back and far away from Terok Nor, which was returned to being called Deep Space 9. Not only did the Dominion and Cardassian alliance fail to end the war soon, but Gul Dukat had stayed behind for his failure of a daughter only to be taken into custody. He was an equal failure, and if Weyoun ever saw him again, he would laugh in his face that he'd once more dropped lower than he already was.

Good working relationship gone to waste. Weyoun wasn't easily impressed by anyone on sight most of the time, but once they were on the right foot or he was at least familiar with the person and sought what he called it. He had wanted it with the Founder, but while she trusted him more than any solid who served her, she didn't treat him the way another did. He had wanted it with Odo while he was occupying the station, but the constable had been somewhat distant and blunt with him. He had wanted it with Captain Sisko, but the man made clear his hatred of him and his affiliation and proved it in three months and longer time.

And now he and Dukat had one only for the vain Cardassian to fall from how high he rose. He was a disgrace to his own people and allies. Weyoun could picture it all: Dukat sitting in a cell and treated as any prisoner he handled, and who knew what became of his pride and joy Ziyal.

 _She and our tailor Garak are an item, or what looks like the beginning of one,_ Mia spoke through their mind link, making him smile wryly.

 _Daddy must be proud that she's with a renegade of their species. Or are they like...you and I?_

 _I honestly don't know. But for all I know, Garak treats her like Nerys and I do, and he didn't know why she loved him. She told me because he was so, and I quote...intriguing._ He laughed at the choice of word. _Overall, he treats her fairly. I have to leave you now to your practice session, beloved. I see you've mastered so far without me,_ she noted with a wink. It made him realize that because they were separated for now again, their differences were settled. He found himself at peace for the moment, now that she mentioned the reminder of what gave him isolation from the dilemma at hand.

He'd had his tunic and boots removed so he was barefoot and bare-chested in this suite which was reserved for the Jem'Hadar training; now it was empty just for him. His body thrummed with the energy that his beloved was with him not in person but in spirit - and the symbol behind his shoulder burned with it, swirling never-ending through his veins. The _kar'takin_ was weilded enough, each session honing his body and strengthening his muscles to nearly resembling the strongest form of his species, which was a rarity. Weyoun found himself staring at himself in a mirror after settling back in, "admiring" the lithe but strong musculature he developed: his shoulders broadened softly, his arms and chest sculpted, and his stomach bearing a six-pack. He'd witnessed this each time he practiced with the _kar'takin,_ which was favored by the Jem'Hadar in terms of blade work.

Now it was their preferred combat dagger. Measured to be twenty-five centimeters, it was slightly curved backwards and had a short edge. Beneath its hilt was another blade, though four centimeters and curving in the opposite direction to its primary companion. It was deadly in both appearance and use, but balanced in his hands, making a soft hiss in the air as he swiped it at his unseen opponent, throwing himself forward and balancing on his hands as he swung his legs in the air and landed on them on the opposite side - this was what Mia called the cartwheel - and threw the dagger for the target on the wall at the far end, hitting directly in the middle.

"I never thought Vorta were physically imposing."

His instincts retaliated with his body at the same time and threw himself backwards, body bending in half and flipping once before he had the unseen speaker pinned to the floor. Weyoun snarled and wrapped his hand around a scaly, ridged throat and his legs pinning a wider waist down to the floor. "Damar," he seethed, "you don't know when to show proper respect on one's privacy."

Damar chuckled; his grip might be stronger now, but Cardassians were still stronger than his people were, and he wasn't choking Damar with the satisfaction he hoped for. "Because for all I know, your people don't have what you're showing...not even a tattoo which looks so familiar to me..."

Weyoun let him go but kept him pinned down. "I would not breathe a word if I were you. If you don't want to risk some voraxna in your kanar when you are not expecting it." Damar had seen the marking he shared with Mia, but he wouldn't say a word of it to the Founder, would he?

~o~

One week later since her father and the crew returned to what was truly called Deep Space 9. Mia did not ever remember feeling this happy in her life now that things were beginning to return to normal. And today she had just reached the four-month mark. She was beginning to show rounder than before for all to see.

They were still at war - guarding the wormhole more than ever made the station more of a target than ever, as well as the Ninth Fleet settling in here - but at the present, nothing else mattered but celebration and the unfurling of flags nationalizing Bajor, the Klingon Empire, and the Federation itself.

The Promenade was, as Weyoun said he wanted it to be, abuzz with life again. Mia was working with more cheer that day than before. She could imagine her father and Kira exchanging their morning greetings and how much he missed hearing from her, as much as she hated saying "Good morning, Dukat". She could only imagine.

The latest winner of dabo at her table was a Bolian, but he was more of a gentleman than any of the Cardassians who emitted catcalls at her every time she passed. It was rare for a male player to give the dabo girls civility this one did. Looking over as he left, she saw Jadzia and Worf indulged - well, she was while he wasn't - in an amusing tale of how his son before them, Alexander, made a stupid mistake aboard the _Rotarran_ involving an overflow of superheated hydraulic fluid on deck, and how he cleaned it up in three days.

She saw her boss go over to the couple's table then, commenting on what a "handsome boy" he was, and how he "must get those looks from his mother". And Worf, ever the grouch, demanded what he wanted only to hear the question about the offer of the wedding held here in Quark's bar, which Worf obviously brushed off and strongly holding the continued preparations of the date set on the Klingon home planet of Qo'noS as soon as the war was over - and then Jadzia surprised them both.

"We'll do it here. Before the week ends, before Alexander leaves. It will be a long time before you see him again, Worf, and it would mean so much to him to attend his father's wedding."

"Perfect!" Quark said. "I'll make the arrangements." Worf wasn't too happy about this, but he agreed, and so his son would be his _tawi'yan,_ a Klingon version of the best man, translated to mean "swordsbearer".

Mia hadn't been to a wedding since Rom and Leeta's on the day the Dominion and Cardassia retook Terok Nor; this would be her next and latest to attend, and she'd gotten Jadzia an early wedding gift she'd wanted to give before the occupation mess. Now she had it on her and presented it to the bride-to-be as soon as her shift was over, and she found Jadzia with Kira Nerys when they were discussing how Worf had basically done all the planning himself.

The necklace was a beautiful pear-shaped, gold setting set with round diamonds and rubies to create the perfect "fire and ice" illusion: two elements so different yet worked harmoniously. "Oh, Mia, you and your father really spoiled me," Jadzia said, hugging her, "but you shouldn't have."

Nerys laughed for her. "Well, you deserved it after letting Worf do everything for you. And really, one week isn't much preparation."

Mia snorted as she joined them, squeezed in between them. "Well, technically, Major, there's not much to do, is there, Lieutenant?" she asked.

Jadzia smiled and shook her head. "Not at all. Worf's handled everything perfect for the last three months, even has it all figured out right down to the color of my shoes." To Mia, it seemed like Worf was treating her like a princess with handling everything for her, but Nerys wasn't a hundred percent sold.

"No offense, Jadzia, but it seems this wedding is all about what _Worf_ wants." For a moment, all three forgot what level they wanted to be until she spoke to the computer. "Habitat ring, section fifty-one. Now, what about YOU?" she asked, returning her attention to the Trill, who made a face as though tasting lemons and shook her head.

"Please, a traditional Klingon wedding ceremony with all the trimmings is something Worf's been thinking about since he was a boy." If anyone else was listening to this conversation, they would have assumed Worf was the domineering male in their relationship, just trying to control her, and she was letting him get away with it. But Worf was a better man than laying a hand on Jadzia. "It probably has something to do with being raised by human parents. In any case, when it comes to Klingon tradition, Worf is very sentimental."

Nerys and Mia both gaped and exclaimed at the same time, "Worf?!" The normally somber-faced and bad-attitude Lt. Commander Worf, _s_ entimental and emotional? It was hard to believe, but Mia herself was willing to bet the opposite of that. Look at Weyoun despite his cruelty amidst his elegant superiority.

"All men are sentimental; they just cover it up with scowls and clenched jaws," Dax said lightly. "There are times where Worf...literally gets misty-eyed talking about Klingon rituals."

"And that's why you're letting him make all the plans about the wedding?" Nerys asked. "Because he gets...misty-eyed about tradition?"

Dax chuckled. "Mostly. It's also because I've been through five Trill ceremonies, three as a bride and two as a groom..."

Mia had let her attention shift away as soon as she saw Odo down the hall. She tried to smile at him, but as soon as he laid his eyes on the three women - notably Nerys - he quickly ducked his head and turned to his right into another corridor. Dax frowned when she saw this. "Is it my imagination, or did Odo try and avoid us?"

Kira scoffed. "I haven't noticed." But Dax scowled, not buying it. "Fine, we've been avoiding each other since the Dominion left the station. I think we're both afraid of talking about...what happened during the occupation. It's something I'd rather not talk about myself."

Mia looked up at her and frowned; linking with the Female Changeling had caused the rift between him and Nerys, and those two really needed to fix it up after five years of what they had. Five years gone to the gutter? Not on her watch. "Perhaps you should start going to him sometime then, to patch this soon," she said, choosing her words carefully as she'd secretly done some talking to on Odo, but it seemed what transpired with him and the major had really done it on him. Of course, he regretted it all, but he needed to put his foot down, walk up to her, and do some REAL making up.

But it begged the question as to HOW.

Both of them didn't care that Dax was still there; Kira was now raising an eyebrow at her. "How should I when not one of us can go to the other? We've both hurt each other, so what are we supposed to do?"

Mia shrugged. "I don't know. Perhaps what I would call the mold position from the Indian-Hindu _Kama Sutra,_ which is similar, I believe, to _jamaharon_ of Risa." The major was blushing and trying not to grin; Jadzia snickered behind her. "What goes is the woman gathers her legs and relaxes backwards while the man penetrates from behind and works it smoothly and slowly to make it memorable and enjoyable. Think of it like both bodies coming together like two pieces of a very hard puzzle put together but worth it. Climax is better than the hard work of the act itself. You don't have to take it from me, but think about it before you and Odo ever decide to muster it up."

~o~

For a better idea other than submitting his stories separately, Jake decided to publish them in a book altogether and titled it _Life Under the Dominion_ for the Federation News Services. He couldn't have been happier when he submitted this morning as early as he could, and Mia was happy for him, spinning around in a circle with him until she gasped for him to let her down. He looked down then when she put her hand on her rounded abdomen. "How's the baby doing?"

She burst out giggling and crying at the same time. "We're both fine. My breasts don't hurt anymore, I'm not sick anymore, but I'm beginning to get hungry for strange food combinations. Just now I had eggs with fried tomatoes. Dad wasn't here, and I just about burnt the tomatoes by accident." He laughed with her, but then the good moment ended when she started crying. She sat down on the sofa, and he moved beside her. "Oh, Jake, I'm sorry!" she blurted, covering her eyes first and then her mouth, showing smearing shines beneath her eyes. "I just..."

"It's him, isn't it?" Jake knew this had to do with Weyoun, the fact he wasn't here to help her out in person. He might support his sister but still couldn't understand WHY she had to fall in love with him to begin with, and a better answer other than the fact it "just happened". Mia nodded.

"I wasn't looking for anything like this to happen, but it really did, Jake. I fell in love with him, and it was too easy. He was always there for me, no other words to describe. We're on different sides, but I keep asking myself this: why are we still together when he might not be there to help me raise our child?"

"Hey, hey, don't think like that." Jake reached over to place his hands on her arms and massage them gently. "You might see him again, and he MIGHT be there, but it's not like I'm psychic or anything. You knew this was going to be hard."

"But I tried not to before. When he was here during the occupation, I thought we'd be closer together..."

He didn't want her talking about this anymore. The occupation was over, Rom was alive - ALL of them were - Dad was back with everyone else, and she and the baby were safe. With the exception of its father serving their enemy side. Everything was in a hazardous zone right now. "Come on, sis, let's get you to work so I can break the news to Dad."

"Well, you're up early, Jake," Quark noted when they both arrived in time to see various Klingon tapestries in rich fabrics being hung up, and native flowers in splashes of red and white. "I thought writers slept late."

"Not always," Jake answered. "I sold my book this morning."

"Okay, I'm going to leave you both so my table guests need me," Mia announced before heading off to "entertain" the round. Quark shook his head before looking back at him.

"Really? How much did you get for it?"

Of course, Ferengi and money, but this wasn't good news he would hear, same for the author himself. "Just a figure of speech. The Federation News Services is going to publish my book about life under the Dominion rule, so it should be obvious."

Quark gaped. "And they're not PAYING you?"

"Nope."

The bartender scoffed. "Well, then, you have my sympathies. First round of drinks on me." Jake gaped in return, before the Ferengi shook his head and returned the "figure of speech" back onto him. This time he laughed, feeling only a _little_ better.

"I wanna tell my dad about the book. Is he still in the holosuite?"

"Yeah, they're still up there. The Klingon bachelor party, four days and nights in a row, and this is the second. You're a writer...use your imagination," Quark said, lowering his voice to a demeaning purr.

Well, if there was _anything_ Jake knew about bachelor parties...

~o~

On the third night before the wedding, Jadzia decided to throw a party in her quarters, and it was fun to behold. Mia might be a new mother in some months, but she might as well live out her independence while she could. She was still young both inside and out, that party girl from university was coming back to the surface so she could share tonight for the bride and their friends - Kira, Quark and his family, Mia's brother Jake, and others. The drums banged on by Jadzia herself and some men in tropical wear that you would see on Earth in Hawaii, the Bahamas and so on, and this was a fun party so far. Mia was enjoying herself every step of the way.

She could see that Dax was happy to get away from her evil future mother-in-law; she heard from Nerys - told by Dax herself - that Sirella, General Martok's wife and matriarch of their House, was hostile because she strongly believed by allowing aliens into their family, they lost their strength. She scoffed; Klingons relied too much on their brute prowess for their own good, but like her words would be spoken to this Sirella, whom she hadn't even met.

But right now, a male dancer in the most revealing garments was performing with a double-sided, burning stick and making the guests holler with joy - and making all the women, including Leeta and Mia herself, swoon - the rhythm of the drums just a perfect atmosphere for intimate activity under the sun, surrounded by nature...she could go on forever.

 _We should have gotten a Risian program for us together while I was there,_ Weyoun teased through their bond, making her laugh. _You and me together, your breasts against my chest and our hands touching each other's skins, and our bodies joining together surrounded by paradise..._ She stopped him there so she could drag her brother in for a dance for awhile before the performance ended, and Dax publicly praised their performer, Lt. Manuele Atoa of the _USS Sutherland._

 _Magnificent,_ Mia sent, just to make her baby daddy roll his eyes and scoff.

 _If he is as the women see him, then you should see how my body has changed since you last saw it. I don't think you will be able to resist me._ He still knew how to sweep her off her feet - and make her burst forth with arousal that Mia blushed having it in front of her brother and all their friends.

She was left by Jake to go over to Quark, and she could only catch a few phrases from them, one of them Jake quoting Jadzia's talents with the drums and raising the room temperature, but Quark grumbled that it was a shame she had a "walking frown called a fiancée. She's too good for him; I've said that from the beginning".

Mia had to only partly agree with her boss, but Worf was still a good man with a good heart despite his rough Klingon attitude. Then she looked over and saw Nerys goofing off with Nog until Odo and his deputies entered. Talk about perfect timing. Mia walked over and pulled Nog away, but that arousing feeling never went away in her body. She had a hard time concentrating on her new dance partner when she heard Odo ask about the "complaints" regarding noise; Nerys responded that it was a "scuffle between Morn and one of the Bolians" - said pair was currently bumping against each other playfully - and "worked it out", and that it would go on for as long as she authorized it.

And then she brought up that they still had to talk about what happened during the occupation.

Her hopes were on the rise; finally, they decided to take her advice, but did _Nerys_ take her advice on the mold position? Not that Mia expected them to rush into that, but based on her experiences, if they were willing as a start... _I believe intimate relations are best kept amongst the other two people themselves,_ Weyoun told her, making her cheeks heat up as he read her thoughts.

 _Perhaps, I should block you from hearing that from now on._

 _Ah, no fair._

 _Because these two have had enough to last a lifetime. Like us._

He sighed, and she could see him bowing his head. _True, too true. But there's more to come._

She saw Odo and Nerys walk through the doorway that was Jadzia's bedroom...alright, she couldn't think about that without giggling, which got Nog's attention as well as Ziyal, who had just come up to join them. She and Ziyal had become closer friends since her father's arrest and the Dominion leaving the station, thanks to Kira. "Hey, you don't want to go thinking about what the major and constable might do when no one is looking," Nog reminded her. Ziyal was frowning until she saw what he was talking about, looking down and sharing a giggle with Mia.

"You know, Nog," she said, "I don't want to know either."

Mia looked over to see the bride-to-be with Lt. Atoa as her toy for the evening, which was amusing to look at and think about. Call THIS a bachelorette party - a last night as a single lady, just like a bachelor party. Last night as a single was traditional with the exception of -

"YOU!" The music ceased at the command of Sirella, mistress of the House of Martok, glaring muderously at Jadzia with the lieutenant. "Away from her," she snarled at Atoa, "or I'll cut your head off and hang it from my belt!"

Jadzia stood and walked over to the Klingon woman, gritting her teeth. "You weren't invited." Mia sensed there was going to be an outbreak, so she and the others gathered around Dax to watch the "show".

"It is time for the _Bre'Nan_ ritual." Said ritual was meant between future mother and daughter-in-law, and if the older woman herself wasn't pleased enough, she would call off the wedding if she wished. She called it utter bull.

"I'm busy."

"Busy acting like a Risian _slut!_ " Sirella spat disdainfully, glaring at Mia when she snapped and stepped forward. No one dared talk to one of her father's oldest and closest friends who happened to be hers, too.

"Madam, I'll do the honors of asking you to leave," Mia said angrily. "You called her a slut which makes me do my part of ordering you to take your business elsewhere or I'll bring in my father." She shrugged off Jake and Nog when they both tried to stop her.

"This doesn't concern you, you insolent little -" Sirella said only to be talked down by Jadzia.

"Don't talk to her like that. I'm only going to ask you to leave once."

"And _you_ ," her future mother-in-law seethed, "will come with me now and perform the _Bre'Nan_ ritual to MY satisfaction - or I will _cancel_ your wedding!"

Jadzia Dax apparently wasn't going to surrender to this domineering alien woman who had no control over her life, and she wouldn't give herself up to satisfy anyone as long as she lived. " _Toruk-DOH!_ " she countered in rage, and Mia almost gasped. She'd uttered an extremely foul curse in Klingon, which made Sirella retaliate and draw a _d'k tahg_ \- a straight blade with two curving secondaries on a hilt bearing the Martok family crest and a spiked pommel - in preparation to murder Dax for her defiance, only to be delivered with a blow to the face by Dax. Nog tried to interfere only for Sirella to shove him aside, and his uncle as well as Odo's men rescued him. Dax stood alone until Mia stood beside her and then before her, protecting her even though the older woman didn't need it.

"Serves you right," Mia told her, earning a curling of the lips.

" _Mok'Ta vor, kash a'VEH!_ " For her limited Klingon speaking, Mia understood that Sirella was telling Jadzia that she was an enemy to her house. She spat at them both literally and in her words before taking her leave. She knew better than to take it lightly that the woman wouldn't actually cancel the wedding even though she had little understanding of Klingon culture. The whole room was in shocked silence and stillness at what they witnessed before the hostess herself ended it.

"Well, what are you waiting for? The party's just getting started. Play something!" She chose Nog as her dance partner, and Mia was about to join before she turned back to her boss and brother, seeing that they exchanged a look that secretly said that hadn't been a good move the bride made.

And by the next day, it was confirmed. The wedding had been cancelled.

Mia wasn't surprised, but it still shocked her. That Klingon hag didn't waste any time, did she? Dax said those words, so now she was. But Sirella wasn't the entire cause; Worf and Dax had their differences, because Quark was quoting that _she_ called _him_ a "pigheaded, stubborn man who puts tradition above everything else" and _he_ called _her_ "frivolous and emotional, refuses to take him or his culture seriously". Surprise, surprise, she thought sarcastically. Weyoun was busy with the Female Changeling when she told all of this to him through their bond; he only laughed.

 _Interspecies marriage...fascinating but apparently not working out, especially with your friends there. Could you have seen this coming?_

 _Yes and no._ Mia sighed as she sat down at one of the empty tables and watched as another banner was taken down. _I suppose this is what pre-marriage and marriage itself is all about, even though I don't see it possible now. I wanted to get married and have a child before, but it happened the other way around. I wish things weren't so complicated._

 _Ah, my Mia._ A shivering sensation coursed through her system as she felt his wave of an invisible kiss touch her soul. _I wish so myself, but it is what it is. We must endure it. I am a clone and you are a human. I endure numerous deaths but prolong however I can of my own will, but there is always a chance I could lose you myself and the child. I'm practically immortal as you are the opposite, as we live on opposite sides of one vast ocean...but I love you more than the stretch of that body of water if it's Kurill, Risa or any planet of desire._ She closed her eyes and moaned at his words. _Do you see the point of life now if there is no one to share it with? This I understand now after meeting the most remarkable woman I have ever known in lifetimes._

She had been so enveloped in his words of wisdom she didn't hear her boss shake her up. "Amelia! Get up and help me make dinner for the engineer and the good doctor."

Miles O'Brien asked for a double sandwich, and Dr. Bashir a steak with mushrooms, baked potato and sour cream and chives. Both had dishes of linguini with shrimp and extra cheese, as well as one loaf of bread. The kava juice was still in the making, but before both men could feast after three long nights of deprivation -

"WHAT are you doing?!"

"Haven't you heard? The wedding is off," Mia answered before either man could answer. Her father shook his head.

"Not anymore. It's back on."

"Worf is apologizing to Jadzia this very moment," Martok answered, picking up Bashir's dish.

"Quark, take it all away, and same goes for my daughter," he told her with a lift of the finger. "No food for those on the path to _Kal'Hyah._ " Four nights of deprived of food, enduring pain and loss, and all things related. Mia could imagine why; four days of hell on earth, the comparison making her laugh. Also the fact that Quark said no refunds for them either.

But the bad news returned yet again when the groom himself made an appearance. His son among the group, Alexander, saw his somber face. "Father, what's wrong?"

"She still refuses to change her mind. The wedding is still off."

Benjamin unleashed a heavy sigh of agitation; he thought Dax was being immature about all of this after seven lifetimes in a host and married five times. Mia hadn't been married yet, so she was having mixed feelings. A part of her agreed with him, but also because she would never sacrifice her identity for the sake of marrying someone she loved. She looked at her father when he announced he was going to her quarters to talk to Jadzia, knock some sense into her. She wasn't going to like it.

The doors to Jadzia's quarters opened when they were both given permission - Quark had allowed her to join her father for the short time - and the resident herself scowled before turning her back to them; she'd apparently been arranging her quarters out of anger and stress-relieving. "Save your breath, Benjamin. Worf has gone too far, and now it's over." She picked up what looked like a Klingon dagger Mia couldn't tell from far away. "You know what he wanted me to do? He wanted me to go crawling back to Sirella and _beg_ her for forgiveness. _Beg_ her...ME. When I was once Federation ambassador to the Klingon Empire, negotiated the Khitomer Accords before Worf was even born." She angrily slammed the weapon on the table which set her father off.

His tone made her jump, too. " _Curzon_ negotiated the accords, and I got news for you, old man," he said strongly, "you are NOT Curzon anymore. You can't expect Sirella to take you seriously just because you carry his memories. To her, you're just a young woman who has decided to marry into her family, even if it means you have to bow down and kiss her boots. That's exactly what you have to do, and you knew that. The moment you decided to marry Worf, you knew sooner or later that you'd have to bow down and show her the respect that she's due."

Mia lowered her eyes to the ground and said nothing; now she wondered if she'd wasted her time even showing up here to begin with only to hear her father and his oldest comrade - in a younger female host - heatedly discuss showing the mistress of the Martok House respect if she wanted to marry into the family. It made her think about marrying Weyoun and the possibility of him bowing down to show her father respect once he found out who the baby's father was, and it terrified her. She forced herself to shove it down when Jadzia hissed.

"This is Worf's fault. Worf and his Klingon tradition." Ben was ready to explode, so Mia stepped in, sitting down beside her and speaking what she knew her father would have said.

"Jadzia, please, calm down. I know Worf must have let this go to his head, but in reality, you're over three hundred years old in the body of a twenty-eight-year-old. Compared to that, Worf is a mere child. Right, Daddy?" she asked, seeing him nod as he sat down on the other side of Jadzia.

"Right you are, honey. Now, you see, old man? If you don't abide by Klingon traditions, then you should never have let yourself fall in love with him in the first place."

 _If you can't...never should have fallen in love...NO! No, I won't regret falling in love with you,_ Mia swore, clenching her fists together as her father's words tried to settle in. She would NEVER regret falling in love with Weyoun and conceiving his child. No matter how much she tried to during the occupation and now, even if they still had a long way to go. But she wouldn't let herself go down that path now, and Jadzia seemed to feel what she was now. She was an independent woman like Mia was, with a life she lived and took charge of her own destiny - and Mia herself, never settling on anything in life - even took great pride in herself. Just...like...Mia. Although the latter was the one who feared the consequences more often than the other.

"And you ARE in love with him," Ben added, knowing full well that she was, and he would do nothing to change that.

"I wasn't looking to fall in love!" Dax said. "I was perfectly happy by myself. I had friends, a career... _adventure._ And then..." She lowered her voice then, taking on a more passionate tone, recalling the one event that changed her heart and soul forever "...this Klingon with a bad attitude walked into my life. We were so different, but we still managed to make it this far. And the next thing you know, I'm getting married. And after three hundred and fifty-six years and seven lifetimes...I still lead with my heart."

Mia felt like crying now; her father was looking off in the other direction. He couldn't read her mind as he dwelled on the past with this Trill in another body he loved like a father figure and now as a best friend, but Jadzia's story of love and difficulty paralleled almost to her own. Weyoun had a gentle heart despite his appetite for ruthlessness. Everything from that to his inhuman beauty was everything she loved about him, and he loved her because of her heart. "That's what we...always loved about you," she choked, "and is that why Worf loves you, too?"

Jadzia looked like she was going to cry, too, and she nodded. "She's right, old man. I've always loved that about you." He was running his hands through her hair in the way he would do to Mia whenever she cried after the father who made her perished in battle. She leaned into Jadzia then, who had leaned into her father to hold onto him.

"Whatever happened to my old friend, that young ensign who always came to me for advice?"

"I grew up," he answered simply.

"Then it's time I grew up, too," Dax answered softly, meaning she knew now that she had to go back to Sirella and apologize.

And so the wedding happened the next day, at noon. Klingon men banged tribal drums in an exhilarating, dramatic rhythm. Banners in rich reds and golds hung Quark's bar, and the flowers drenched the air over the guests. Small bonfires were lit, heating the room as if to increase intense passion. Mia was beside Jake and Nerys, Odo behind them, while Quark and his family were nearby, and her father as well as Martok, O'Brien and Bashir were nearby with their _ma'stakas_ ready for the end of the services.

And speaking of which, Lady Sirella herself exited from behind the tapestry collection and began her sermon. Magnificent, if only Mia didn't dislike her simply because of how she behaved at Jadzia's bachelorette party. She raised her hand high, and the drumbeats subsided softly.

"With fire and steel did the gods forge the Klingon heart. So fiercely did it beat, so loud was the sound, that the gods did cry on this day we brought forth the strongest heart in all the heavens. None can stand before it without trembling at its strength. But then...the Klingon heart weakened. Its steady rhythm faltered, and the gods said, 'Why have you weakened so we have made you the strongest in all of creation?' And the heart said..." She paused so she could look at Worf and waited patiently for his part.

He stood majestically before all to see, crowned with gold and garbed with regal red and trimmed, too, with gold, as though he'd come from the Tudor period from planet Earth. He responded very seriously. "I am alone."

"And the gods knew that they had erred, so they went back to their forge and brought forth...another heart." She gestured down the middle of the parted crowed called the aisle, and all heads turned towards the bar's entrance in time to see the bride. Mia's heart thundered when Jadzia proudly, boldly, and confidently strolled down in a long red leather dress that had a cut in the front to bare her bold cleavage, her arms covered with thick red velvet sleeves, and she, too, was crowned with gold. Her long dark hair fell in a sleek wave down her back. Seeing her made Mia try to picture herself in her place...and it was perfect. Just everything about this seemingly operatic, picture perfect event made her heart pick up its pace, and she had to show Weyoun the rest of the sermon, not caring that he was busy.

Once the bride took her place before her groom, the best man himself - Alexander - came out with two _bat'leths_ and gave each one for them to act out the symbolism of two fighting hearts for equality, and Jadzia "won" in time for the mistress to continue. "But the second heart beat stronger than the first, and the first was jealous of its power...fortunately, the second heart was tempered by wisdom."

"If we join together," Jadzia said with immense influence, "no force can stop us." She lowered her weapon as Worf did his and gave them back to Alexander, they joined hands.

"And when the two hearts began to beat together, they filled the heavens with a terrible sound. For the first time, the gods knew fear. They tried to flee, but it was too late. The Klingon hearts destroyed the gods who created them, and turned their heavens to ashes. To this very day, no one can oppose the beating of two Klingon hearts...not even me."

She had forgiven Jadzia, after everything. Jadzia gave her a smile in return, after performing the ritual and painstakingly bowing down literally to give and earn respect in return. She was so close to being accepted into the family now. And now was the time for the vows.

"Worf, son of Mogh...does your heart beat only for this woman?" _Weyoun, does your heart beat only for me?_ Mia had to send in return for him. He was fighting to keep himself together when he answered back - and in perfect timing with Worf's answer.

"Yes."

"And will you stand with her and beside her against all who would oppose you?"

"I swear."

"Jadzia, daughter of Kela, does your heart beat only for this man?" Weyoun heard this, too, and asked her the same question. She, too, answered at the same time.

"Yes."

"And will you stand with him and beside him against all who would oppose you?"

"I swear."

"Then all who are present here know that this man and woman...are married," Sirella announced, allowing Worf to kiss his bride and the applause to roar to life. Mia was more than happy for them now, and the fact Sirella welcomed a daughter now. The sight of the two women embracing made her dwell on herself once more, and the man whose child rested in her womb for five more months. It had been dangerous and exciting at the same time; they were enemies who fell in love and shouldn't have, but did anyway because their bond was stronger than any shackle in the universe - the story of the Klingon beating hearts proving more powerful than their makers proving true - but possibly of him bowing down to show Ben's respect once he found out about the baby's father...

 **Took me two or three days to do this, chapter longer than usual, but I had so much fun. :D Both Jadzia's party and the wedding still make my heart beat faster than usual. Just Mia being there at Worf and Jadzia's wedding makes her think of herself and Weyoun, the enthrallment and terror combined together because she fears her father's reaction. Understandable enough, but you can never stop two beating hearts coming together.**

 **Up next: Odo and Kira expansion. :)**


	23. Inspiration

**I thought people should know I am not trying to force Mia into ANY scene or event, but as you all know, she is loving and caring and would help anyone in need even though she is going through a crisis herself. She tries to be present on her own however she can while managing her own issues.**

 **I keep forgetting to mention that Summer Glau plays Mia; for all of you who saw The 4400 which Jeffrey Combs guest starred and recurred in, she plays his love interest. And as for the intimacy between Odo and Kira, inspiration came from "Wide Awake" by Cyndi, on the site. :) Special thanks to her. And when I saw the episode "A Simple Investigation" from season 5, I had to say Odo got lucky only for it to end bad. And Kira as well as Dax "gossiping" about it was priceless as Captain Sisko's reaction. XD**

 **People should also know about when Mia first learned she was pregnant: I'm not wholly experienced, and I think two months after her first time should be enough for her to miss a period, in case anyone wondered. Not wholly mentioned, but think of the very first day of those two weeks when she noticed the symptoms and has been helped out by Dr. Bashir since then, if that helps. I should have mentioned it early on, but it never occured to me then.**

Chapter Twenty-Two

Inspiration

 _"I honestly do not know where to begin."_

 _"Take your time and explain the best you can," she said as they sat behind the closed doors that was Jadzia's closet; it was the closest they could go without being interrupted by the resident herself or any of the other guests. Odo sighed and looked down at his lap._

 _"She..." He meant the Female Changeling. "...well, she wanted to 'make amends', as the best way to put it, show me what it was like to be a part of our people, existing as one being and trading utter bliss back and forth. Joining together and not wanting to go away when there are times we have no choice to in the sake of venturing to learn more about another species. She wanted me to come home at a time like this, thought it would erase the past, but it hasn't changed anything...until it came to the link."_

 _Her gaze on him was intense. "Tell me more," she insisted softly. "No secrets no matter how difficult it is." She reached over and placed her hand over his; it wasn't the same way how the female touched his shoulder to make him uncomfortable when she told him they had to break the solids' will to live freely; Nerys touched him by means of encouragement._

 _"Hmm...well, to put it in the best manner: I was a part of everyone, never alone and feeling secure, indescribably so. Paradise is called that way because it was absolute...complete happiness. Nothing else in the universe, not even the simplest amount of trouble. Very beautiful, pleasant and peaceful in perfection, something I never felt since...Arissa. But the way the Female Changeling saw it, our link was nothing compared to human and humanoid, and so forth, mating. She saw what it was like, satisfied with her new insight, but she refused to change her perspective of the solids. She tried to...take me from you." He lowered his eyes in shame at the memories of their confrontations coming back; he wondered why he was here now, and felt the need to get away from here, spare himself and Kira this trouble, but before he could open the doors again, she stopped him._

 _"No, Odo, you promised. We're not stopping this when we're getting somewhere," she said hotly. "You've told me enough of the link I need to know, so tell me about Arissa now."_

 _"Arissa was the first woman I'd ever been close with. Being with her...it seemed like we would be happy together once the investigations were over, until I learned what she really was. I tried to convince myself no matter what or who she really was, she was the woman, but the happiness was short-lived. With the Changeling link, our bodies intermingled, becoming an indescribable wash of bliss."_

 _"Too bad I'm not one of them."_

 _"That's what she said, and you're right. You're more than that...you're far better than the link. Or should I say MORE than better. We shouldn't let our differences stop us." His face fell. "I can never forget how I fell in love with a woman who never existed - when she did. And she had a husband she never knew she had after everything that happened."_

 _He was surprised to see that she looked like she was going to let loose a tear at his chance at happiness only to lose it in the end. He didn't even speak the words out loud, but Arissa was not Nerys - he acknowledged that long after she left - the woman he had been alongside with longer than the last five years. She had genuinely cared for him when he felt stronger than friendship, but fear of rejection prevented him from ever telling her the depth of those feelings...and the Female Changeling in disguise of the real Kira Nerys had shattered those hopes in that cave._

 _But not now._

 _"She made you feel better about being with a woman, though," Nerys said softly. "She opened that door inside you...brought you to me now." She was smiling now, leaning in and_ kissing _him - on the cheek, not the mouth. He wasn't sure why she didn't directly kiss him on the mouth, but he didn't care; the sensation was pleasant enough, sending his body into a similar state. "Maybe now is a good time to carry out the suggestion I was given?"_

 _Odo raised what mimicked an eyebrow. "Suggestion...? Oh, Mia again, is it?" He sighed heavily; the girl had too much experience with intimacy for her own good._

 _Nerys giggled like the young girl that Mia still was, even when she was going to be a new mother in five more months. "Well, she provided helpful insight on 'going for it' and marking a new beginning. It's called the..." Her cheeks flushed. "...mold."_

 _Odo couldn't help but chuckle. "The_ mold? _A position of this..._ Kama Sutra _she is fond of bringing up every now and then?" He wasn't surprised when she answered yes, and after describing the details, he felt inclined to ask -_

 _"Yes, I was getting around to asking you if you are willing to go ahead...with me," Nerys said. "See if we can...start off this way."_

 _He pondered this only to remember how Mia endured during the occupation in the early stages of her pregnancy. He wouldn't be able to help Nerys conceive a child, but the complications to follow... "Nerys, are you sure you want this?" She nodded and reached for his shirt, which in turn materialized to show bare skin which Arissa had touched and mated with in only a single night. She looked down and saw that he'd kept his pants on; his reasons were because of that timidity he'd heard was natural during your first time, but he wasn't new to this. Perhaps it was because it was finally happening with her, this beautiful, fierce woman sitting in front of him. When he had thought the chance would never come; had she thought the same?_

 _"Let me see the rest of you, Odo. No mysteries, remember?" He complied then and "shed" his pants so all of him was for her eyes; he felt odd being naked in front of her when she was still in her dress. And then to his surprise, she'd removed her dress and left herself in her undergarments; without words or breaking eye contact, they were gone so her impressive warrior's body was before his eyes._

 _"Nerys, you are..." His voice failed him. There were no words to describe his Nerys, just as there had been none for that very first night he experienced. "How do we begin this 'mold'?"_

 _She laughed and turned onto her side, laying down and resting with one arm tucked underneath her head for support. Seeing how her legs were united together made Odo realize the actual meaning behind the description given:_ both bodies molded together as two perfect pieces of a puzzle _. Two pieces fitting together after a long hard search. He slipped behind her and wrapped one arm around her waist while the other elevated his body for support in this cramped area the best it could. Murmuring to himself and to her, his member shimmered and evolved into gelatinous form so he could enter her easily from behind, and when he did, she let loose the most magical of moans when he began to slide in and out of her body, pleasing her in the most coital way imaginable, thanking Mia once again for her advice of "taking advantage of it"..._

~o~

Their "discussion" had taken on into the morning when Jadzia found them and informed them that they were on duty. He'd had no idea that they'd stayed in the closet that long and lost track of the time...but it had been truly wonderful.

But even that did not erase the conflict of what he'd asked of her before the occupation and after the crew returned - and after that night.

He and Nerys had been together since then for two and a half months now. After that had been business during the day and sometimes in between their quarters, but never what everyone else called "dinner dates". Sometimes Odo wondered what was missing really, if dinner and flowers was really the answer - or if it was really necessary.

"I'm not really surprised," Quark said that day in his office, when Odo had it in him to "confide" in him about his relationship with Kira. "But what did you _think_ was going to happen when you decided to 'link' with the major?"

"I wasn't expecting anything," Odo answered, turning around in his chair and away from the Ferengi.

"How long has it been since she and Shakaar broke up?"

"About a year."

"Less than a year," Quark repeated. "So, let me get this: you're finally in a sexual relationship with her but haven't done anything else besides meeting in each other's quarters whenever you could, plenty of opportunities to start this and now that you have, you two haven't gone beyond 'bed time' -"

Odo whipped around and glared at him; why on earth did he bother asking the bartender to be here in the first place? "Who asked for your opinion?"

"You did," Quark countered. "I came in here to talk about a missing shipment when you were the one who started talking about the major. You want my advice and make it easier on the both of us? Get into bed with her and get into another position."

Odo gaped at him. "Is that the best you can do?"

"Well, I'd like to see someone do better, like Mia. She's got it better in this field than either of us even when she's hitting it rough that her baby daddy isn't here to help her out." He scoffed. "Now that she's getting bigger and bigger, I'd have to keep her off the dabo tables for awhile and do something simpler for me. Not all my male guests want a pregnant lady in their line of vision. Even on my planet, those rules apply. Not exactly an attractive sight, but that's beside the point. You're not exactly the most lovable person in the galaxy. Not even in this sector OR on this _station."_ He leaned forward so he whispered in Odo's face. "Or even in this _room_."

Odo shook his head. This was going nowhere; the only reason he asked Quark to begin with was because he was the nearest to come his way today. But he had to agree, he wasn't exactly the most fun-loving being you would come across. "You're cold..rigid... _remote_ ," Quark went on, with Odo nodding silently to each word. "Now, can I leave now?"

"Please do." He wanted the Ferengi very much to leave him alone to his thoughts - but then they traveled back to the one expert in relationships. "Wait, I need a favor from you. If I could...spare some time with Mia."

~o~

So Nerys was gone for today and the next two days on Bajor for business, and now Odo was here asking her for some advice on getting them to have more in their relationship than just lovemaking and business. Mia frowned at this; if she were younger again, dreaming more often, she would have said yes, but there had been one time - long before Weyoun - where she'd been asked out by this guy who turned out to want only one thing and that one thing should be obvious. Dinner and flowers - all the mediocre stuff - were too common. She'd thought about asking Weyoun if he ever wanted to do those things...or had she? She couldn't remember if so or not; damn long-term memory loss. All she could ever think of was settling into bed with him after asking him about his day, and nothing else mattered. That had to be how it was with Odo and Nerys - and now he was here asking for more.

"Well, back in college before my first father died, it was me and the girls out for some celebration after a long day of excelling classes," she explained to him while at one of the empty tables; it was almost late, and her shift was almost over, but most of the dabo tables were clear, and Quark was relieving her of that job until the baby was born. Now she was stuck serving the guests or being behind the bar with him. She thanked him because her feet hurt sometimes nowadays. At least there were enough waiters around here she didn't have to be up and walking too much unless one of them quit, was fired, or lazed and asked her to do it for them - the last of the three was rare.

"Succeeding was important, and I still think so," she went on, feeling happy and sad at the same time; things changed back then for her when she had just reached adulthood. "But then you know what happened when I lost people I cared about," she said softly. "Lot of my friends at Starfleet I stayed in touch with until they graduated and got positions of their own, one of them Annora. She's married now, too."

And then he interrupted her. "Mia, I really love your stories about your friends and the past, but we should get to the real situation at hand. Kira..."

Mia nodded, putting down her non-alcoholic juice. "Yeah, you and her are doing great, but you feel like you're missing out on dinner and flowers, and a kiss afterwards. The cliché romance stuff. After all this time, you and her took my advice and went for it after sorting your problems out. Remember early on before you told her how you felt about her that she thought of you only as a very dear friend? It doesn't always happen, but it's possible definitely. And if you're worried about her getting back with Shakaar Edon again, don't worry about jack, because it's you and her now." She didn't need to dwell on thinking about all of this because her words said were enough. She looked him over and remembered what Quark had told her. "Quark's right, too; you really need a loosening up. You got all the personality of an icicle." He opened his mouth, prepared to ask if she thought he had no emotion, but she held up her hand. "No, I'm not saying anything along the lines of emotionless, but you just don't show them often. I've known you long enough to know that."

She stood up then after finishing the last of her drink, stretching her back so her bones popped and her bulging stomach almost waved in front of Odo's face - he backed away then, which made her laugh - and she almost felt ready for some physical activity despite Dr. Bashir advising her to take it easy. Those makara herbs he prescribed her with helped, too, and she could feel what Nerys had while she was surrogate to the O'Briens. They tasted like they "came out of Quark's ear", but washing them down with kava juice made it better. Having an intense craving for rippleberries - thanks to Weyoun - came along afterwards to wash down the nasty aftertaste if she ever had water to take with them.

"We're going to be turning up the heat, thawing you out, and getting more of your feelings bubbling to the surface," Mia went on proudly, adjusting her skirts. "I'm gonna ask Quark for my new holosuite program he got two days ago. I haven't had the chance to play it yet, so you and I will be the first."

Said program involved a trip to Risa - no, not sexual pleasure - and enjoying the sights and music, dancing and never-ending thrills. It was her personal escape if actually traveling to the planet was difficult in these war times. "We're gonna be having some fun," Mia said cheerfully, but Odo didn't look convinced.

"What exactly does 'fun' have to do with Kira?"

Mia scoffed; she would pretend she didn't hear that. Fun had to do with _everything_ , even in these difficult times. She thought about involving Weyoun in seeing this again before she decided not to; this was between her and Odo only. Her lover might have more "important" matters at the present. Though Weyoun wasn't here physically, he mentally eased her distress over this pregnancy. "For a start," she said, ignoring Odo altogether, "is we lose that and replace it with some more...beach wear."

"Oh, you mean like..." His security garb shimmered and materialized into a bare, lean but lightly muscled chest - not like Weyoun, more like less - and a pair of long white pants. If Mia didn't know any better, she was flushing with heat and pink-cheeked right now. "...this?"

 _Alright, that's not my Weyoun...but damn..._ "If Nerys were in my place right now..." Her voice failed her. She'd never noticed Odo this way before that she could recall, but he was making her flustered and feel like a schoolgirl again - or was it just the damned pregnancy hormones?

"Yes?" Odo was looking at her intensely, waiting for her answer. She quickly shook her head.

"Doesn't matter. What matters is that we need to get moving, because the musicians are ready to play...and we ought to start partying with the other guests." All around them, they were surrounded by lush greenery and pristine sand beneath their feet. The sound of ocean waves was an incredible soothe to the senses. The beach was common to everyone, but it was also isolated paradise to escape from brutality outside the pit of volcanic mountains, crystalline waterfalls and forestry. If no one else approved of untouched beauty like that, they were sorely mistaken. And it was what Mia always imagined for herself when she got married and went on a honeymoon getaway.

"I don't even know how to dance!" Odo protested when she moved to take his hands into hers. Despite being six and a half months pregnant, she was surprised that she could still dance even if this was all a holographic program.

"There's no need to," Mia answered over the lush tune and vocals filling the air. "It's called happy times for a reason: free flowing, no worries at all."

The rhythm flowing in her veins, she dipped and swirled with him, and he miraculously followed her lead, sometimes "accidentally" pulling her closer to him and laughing with her as he began to enjoy it with her as she told him he would - and he was REALLY having the time of his life in this carefree environment. The tribal drums and flute made him laugh more than he ever did...than Mia ever remembered him doing. She wondered if the music really made him do it - rather if SHE made him do it - or if he did it all by himself.

Either way, he was loosening up from his rigid shell everyone saw, and once Kira saw this change, she was in for one hell of a surprise.

And he was still shaking it off by the time the festivities were over, and they were treated to some coconut milk and a plate of assorted fruits ranging from melons to mangos, papayas and so on. "So, how did it feel loosening up that rigidness?" she teased.

"Well, it was very...robust."

Mia's sides just about burst from laughter again; the energy was still inside her from all the fun that her father and brother were sure to ask her about it later. "Robust? Of course, but is that all you have to say?" Her coconut milk almost spilled from her mouth and onto her blouse, but she wiped it off her chin in time.

"Well, it _was_ ," Odo insisted. "Full of energy, never ending and never tiring. I don't know why I wasn't so nervous."

"Nothing to be nervous about. You were too busy having fun. You weren't tense like a statue like you always are, and the more you keep this relaxation up, you'll get what you've been wanting so bad. Know what I'm saying?"

"Hmm." He nodded and took what looked like a sip even though he didn't drink exactly, and all of this was an illusion. "Does this mean I now get to thank you for this...what do you call it...?"

"Inspiration for getting the girl?" Mia teased, winking. "Just about it." Come to think of it, again, she wished she and Weyoun had this much fun while he was here. Remembering his words the night of Dax's bachelorette party, she moaned with liquid pleasure when she took another drink of coconut nectar.

This continued the next night when Quark gave the program to them with a knowing smile and wished them to "have fun", but while Mia winked at him, Odo just nodded and wanted to get this over with. After another tribal tune - this time taking on a darker undertone, involving an Aztec temple that in no way was related to the situation, but enough to get more of an extremely mature level of excitement...

"Oh, I told you that you would be enjoying yourself," Mia told him as she shared with him this time a tropical slush she loved on Earth. "Matter of fact, as a start, I can see you bringing the major in here for what you and I are doing now...as soon as she returns."

And this day as well as the next passed by. Mia saw the ship dock and release the passenger herself, but she stayed near as possible to see how she would first approach the constable - and hidden to hear what was going on.

"Odo!"

"Nerys!" She could read his physical signs as well as she could read Weyoun's. He was surprised to see her back so soon - or had those three days really gone by? He must have lost track of time; time seemed lost to him ever since she left for Bajor. And she seemed to be in a rather...chipper mood.

"Anything interesting happen while I was gone?" She was grinning.

"No," he lied. How could he explain the holosuite fun without her there? It wasn't like anything happened between him and Mia, just that... "It's been...rather dull. But now that you are here, I'm glad you're here. And I must get back to work." Kira was disappointed that he didn't stay long and converse with her now that she'd returned, and once he was gone, she headed in the other direction for some privacy and prayer to the Prophets of Bajor. Mia wasn't religious, but part of her felt disturbed interrupting the prayer herself; her other half told her she was being an idiot talking to Kira about Odo at this time. He had been having so much fun when the woman of his affections returned at last...but now his anxiety had returned.

"How did you get in here?" Nerys gaped as soon as she saw her over the candlelight.

"Ninja skills," Mia teased, stepping closer. "Wanted to talk about Odo and how he should have talked to you more as soon as you came back."

Kira's jaw drop changed into a mixture between a laugh and a scoff. "Odo?" she repeated, disbelieved.

"Yeah, we both know he's nuts about you. You two have been going strong for two and a half months, but ever since you left, he's been spending time with me in a holoprogram of mine that I've...gotten him to break out of his comfort shell."

"Odo...spending time in a _holosuite?_ " She busted out giggling, covering her mouth and failing to stifle them. "I'm sorry, but that's not the Odo I know."

The Odo they both knew never had any fun, but this really got him rocking. That choice of words made Kira laugh more, and with Mia. "Well, he's not the stick-in-the-mud anymore. He's been wanting to do something like this with you because he wants to have this...relationship with you involve more, and I think this whole 'getting him out and having fun' is working. He might as well want to ask you out to dinner in the event of time, Nerys."

"And that's exactly what he ought to do himself, not coming from you. Amelia, if you don't mind, I'm trying to meditate which you didn't mean to interrupt." She assumed the raise of hands and closed her eyes, but Mia rolled her eyes. Of course she didn't mean to interrupt this, but this was ODO and HER they were talking about, and she wasn't leaving until business was settled.

"See, stubbornness and grouchiness. You and him were definitely made for each other. Well, then, if you won't settle the dinner issue with me, I'll might as well..." She stood up and brushed her skirt off, turning to take her leave. "...let you two sort it yourselves since I did the best I could." She turned back to see Nerys' eyes trained on her, eager to hear more from her. Mia grinned.

"Whenever you do, my program is ready for you two for some more 'alone time' besides each others' quarters."

~o~

She and Odo wound up in Mia's holosuite alright, last night which happened yesterday after Mia's suggestion, and it was utter bliss...but at the same time, Nerys wasn't sure how to take it. Mia had done a great job help setting all of this up, helping bring them closer, but Nerys wondered about all those times about thoughts of dinner and a kiss afterwards...now it seemed it wasn't necessary, but there was only one way to find out. She and Dax were just talking about what the Trill called "moments of clarity" - the major had it both times, she'd told her - and that was when she saw Odo leaving his office and handing a PADD report to one of his deputies.

"Odo, can we talk about last night?" she asked as soon as she caught up to him, but his pace was brisk.

"Perhaps," was his reply. "When can we evaluate this...advancement of ours?"

"How about over dinner like we talked about before?"

" _Dinner?_ " He ceased in his steps and looked her way, surprised.

"That's right," Nerys answered boldly, glad she was taking charge today when last night he had all the control in all three different positions - while beginning with the most romantic and universal which was common with deflowering and any time to follow - and no witnesses to watch, not even Mia - next the arc which was her arms supporting her as her legs flexed and bent for him to elevate his hips and settle against hers for a powerful climax to follow... "Name the restaurant - any one around here - but anything but a holosuite." Now was the time to show this new image of their relationship to everyone instead of keeping it private and to Mia and Quark only. "So, do we have a deal about that?"

"And if we do, then what?" he asked, posture rigid once more. "Dancing, and after that, you expect me to kiss you?"

She couldn't believe that question was even necessary after everything. "I don't know; it's possible. Doesn't every dinner end with a kiss?"

Odo scoffed and shook his head. "Well, then, if that's the case, who needs dinner? Why don't I just kiss you and get it over with?" Nerys was about to respond when he had already taken her up and held her as he leaned his head down and captured her lips with his for the whole Promenade to see - even Quark and Mia, as well as Dax herself.

The wave washing over her was immensely powerful, moreso than any kiss she ever shared with Shakaar. Odo's mouth was intensely soft and smooth; she could spend all day now just enjoying this simple act which made a difference more than the irritating "crusade" about something that anyone else could do for someone they cared about. But she and Odo weren't just anyone else. It was as Mia said: they were made for each other despite their different peoples. Slowly tearing away, Kira Nerys looked into those "bedroom" blue eyes of his and sighed heavily.

"You're right," she whispered, sharing another kiss with him and thanking Mia for this. "Who needs dinner when everything is as it should be?"

 **The instrumental Odo and Mia dance to is "Jungle Festival" by Derek Fiechter, and if anyone wants to take a listen on YouTube, it's perfect for a dance. :D The next one was composed by him and his brother Brandon, called "Aztec Temple".**

 **I thought Mia helping the couple get together seem better, and I don't believe you can get any better than how they went through, am I right? :) Seems they don't need any of those things such as dinner and dancing after all. Everything is perfect the way it is.**


	24. Sweet Suffering

**This chapter really was hard because I had NO idea what to do next with Weyoun and Mia. XD But after watching the episode "Statistical Probabilities" and a little help from Irishchick1982, I got it. :) This story is officially becoming AU with influence from the actual show. Enjoy.**

Chapter Twenty-Three

Sweet Suffering

Weyoun was growing tired of this war.

He had been pressing Damar to make those peace speeches for the whole universe to see over the last few months, as leader of the Cardassian Union, but during this latest visit to Deep Space 9 - and unable to find the time to see Mia after so long - even Captain Sisko, not surprisingly but infuriatingly enough, refused to negotiate the terms, not even concerning the increased production of ketracel-white for the Jem'Hadar...but all it needed was the tri-nucleic fungi harvested on the Kabrel system, and its yridium bicantizine was the key component for the white. And Major Kira insulted him as soon as he and Damar boarded the airlock, snitching on his "games" that they were all friends, but the captain wouldn't fall for it this time. He'd sniffed and made no reply, walking away from her to get this over with.

Someday, perhaps, he might end his frustration with his odds against Sisko and form a mutual friendship after their peoples came to an understanding. Once that happened, he could take Mia's hand with or without her father's permission. _He won't be swayed so easily after your "past" differences, love,_ she told him when she saw what he was thinking. _For all we know, you'll go through what Lt. Commander Dax did with her mother-in-law, only you and Dad._

They had been here for two days now, and only now Weyoun received a fascinating message from one of his Jem'Hadar that a strange group of people requested to meet him and Damar in private, regarding some "valuable information" for them. Whoever they were, it seemed they were willing to make a move for their Federation if the captain was so hesitant to do so. The Dominion really needed the signing of the acquisition, and then they would have unlimited supplies of white. Things had only gotten better for them. He had to see Damar now.

"Still at it, I see," Weyoun noted when he found him at the conference table. They were remaining here until the negotiations were settled, it seemed. Damar was still overlooking a PADD when he saw the ambassador announce his presence. Putting it down, he sighed and leaned back in the chair.

"I've been looking over Sisko's latest counter proposal. We don't seem to be getting anywhere with them. He knows why we need the Kabrel system so bad."

"Not very encouraging, isn't it?" Weyoun mused, silently agreeing with him. Perhaps he should have predicted they would be discovered sooner or later, but something needed to be done soon, either way.

"I don't know why you had me called for peace talks in the first place," Damar complained, sliding the PADD in front of him. He shook his head, making Weyoun do the same. You'd have thought he would be "better" than Gul Dukat, who was currently sitting in a Starfleet prison somewhere far from here, but Gul Damar was no different than his predecessor, not even with his kanar addiction either. Weyoun _tsked_ and walked around to stand beside Damar closer.

"My, my, how quickly you've taken to your role." Damar was glaring at him with a silent warning he paid no mind to. "And to think," Weyoun went on, enjoying it very much, "that a short time ago, you were nothing more than Gul Dukat's agent." If he wanted a good working relationship with him like his former master established with the Dominion representative, he ought to start seeing a better picture and stop complaining about it like a child, stop focusing on the negative.

The Cardassian lowered his gaze, not wishing for the Vorta to see his true emotions when the latter knew he was trying to hide the fact he was the exact opposite of what Weyoun wanted him to be. "I...appreciate the faith you show in me." The Vorta ambassador saw through this feeble masquerade spot on.

"Then show some faith in _me_. Don't be like your predecessor, second-guessing my every move. Look where it got him." A place in jail for possibly the rest of his life, all because he chose to stay behind for the love of his daughter who was currently with a Cardassian former spy. "It should be clear to you that _no one_ is irreplaceable."

It should also be clear that no one sneaks their way from the Dominion like a spirit, either. The action never went unpunished. Damar nodded without a word, knowing this. "Now," Weyoun continued, confident he got through his friend-foe's hard head enough, and ready to get the good - and slightly questionable - news out to his partner, "I've just received a very interesting message from an unidentified party claiming to have very important information that could be very beneficial to us."

Now Damar looked up at him with great interest; he almost smiled, for now they were back on the right track. "What sort of information?" he queried.

"I don't know. But we're going to find out." If only he could figure out whether or not this was a trap...

This unknown source requested they meet in Cargo Bay Two to discuss this "information"; the longer time passed while they waited, Damar began to grow even more impatient, but Weyoun was determined to wait for however long it took. He never gave up so easily. They had been here for less than an hour - perhaps longer - but still no sign of this group. And now that he thought of it, for all he knew, Captain Sisko was probably sending someone else - if that was the case, he was hiding the fact he wanted to make amends now and didn't want any of his crew knowing right now - to settle the dispute here and then broadcast it upon settlement. His veins thrummed with excitement at the possibility -

"Damn it, where are they?"

He rolled his eyes at Damar's impatience. "They'll be here," he promised him, but the latter wasn't convinced.

"This is ridiculous," he spat, "sneaking into a storage bay for a secret meeting. I'm not some agent of the Obsidian Order, but the leader of the Cardassian _Empire_!"

Weyoun jerked his head in his direction, fixing him with cold, pale eyes freezing him externally but burning him internally. "Don't let it go to your head," he growled, not bothering to lift a finger into that scale-covered face for emphasis. "You serve only at the Dominion's pleasure." If Damar thought he could be better than Dukat and rising higher than him, thinking he could swindle for a higher seat in favor of the Founders, he was sorely mistaken. It was Weyoun who had all the control over him. He tried to change the mood with a smile. "Besides, I think it's exciting."

His sensitive ears picked up the whooshing of doors opening. "They're here," he whispered to Damar, and stepped out to greet their unknown visitors...

...only to come face-to-face with - "Odo!" Weyoun exclaimed, surprised yet happy to see him. He spread his arms out with reverence, and the constable knew what he was going to say next. "You -"

"Yes, I honor you with my presence."

He could tell that the shape-shifter wasn't the one they were supposed to meet, so there had to be no way he could know WHY they were here in the cargo bay. "We...seemed to have gotten ourselves lost," he tried to say, but Odo huffed, disbelieving him.

"They're not coming."

Damar tried to feign ignorance. " _Who's_ not coming?" Weyoun cringed internally. _Idiot._ Whoever they were supposed to meet must have been caught and sold out to Captain Sisko, and that meant they knew about the secret meeting here in the cargo bay that was supposed to take place. That was why Odo was here instead.

Once more, the chief of security grunted, brushing his pathetic lie off. "I had a feeling you were going to say that, lie and play me for a fool as to why you are here." Weyoun was tempted to roll his eyes and turn to glare at the Cardassian; they were sure to leave the station soon enough now that it was over. Once more, for the time being. "Shall I...escort you to your quarters?" Odo asked, leading the way. "Captain Sisko knows of this by now and would very much be happy you are leaving soon since this has not gone as either of you expected."

So they were embarking back home tomorrow. Weyoun was burning with fury once more as he joined Damar at their guest quarters, and Odo promised he would be keeping an eye on them for the remainder of their stay. Not that he minded, but how was he going to visit Mia before he left in the morning?

 _Teleport. Why else?_

He waited until the Cardassian knocked himself out with more kanar and placed his Jem'Hadar on guard until he returned. Weyoun closed his eyes and willed the energy in his body to take him to his beloved's quarters when he knew no one was with her.

Opening his eyes, he saw he was in the familiar surroundings he had not been in since departure back to Cardassia. It gave him great peace to be in another room far from Damar.

And then he saw her.

"Mia," he breathed, beholding the sight of her on the sofa while reading a PADD. She was dressed in a simple white dress which wrapped around her body - and accentuated the firm, round plump that carried their child. The baby had grown so much since he last saw them both, and it made him want to...no, he never cried and never would. Not in front of her. She could, but not him. "Oh, Mia."

She stood up slowly, wincing since the weight of the baby grew on her, but he hurried over and helped her up before drawing her into his embrace, not wanting to let her go again EVER. Her arms wrapped around his body, her protruding abdomen a slight obstacle between to prevent their bodies from making full contact, but he didn't care. Her hold on him was tighter, more desperate than his was. "Weyoun, my darling!" she cried out, crying into his tunic. "I thought I wouldn't see you while you were here."

"Mmm, believe me, so did I," he answered, turning his face away as hers buried into his neck, kissing him. He sighed at the feel of her lips on his skin, closing his eyes. "Damar has doused his insides full of kanar he won't expect me until morning when we depart. But Odo is keeping an eye on me that I have to make tonight last while it can."

She sighed, too. "As ever." She drew back to look him in the eyes, his lavender ones meeting one brown and one blue...and now he realized that he never once asked her why her eyes were such. Then his attention shifted when her hand took his and placed it on her swollen stomach so he could feel and sense the presence of the offspring they shared. He detected it resting peacefully inside its mother, just now over its seventh month term and then it wouldn't be long now. And he saw that it was a girl.

They were having a daughter.

"What is it?" He looked back up at Mia's curious, expectant face and smiled softly.

"Do you want to know what we are having?"

Her curving lips mirrored his. "I'm tempted."

Weyoun chuckled and leaned in to kiss her briefly before answering. "Female," he replied simply.

The joy in her eyes was evitable, setting his heart alight. Weyoun held both her hands in his as he sat down on the sofa and brought her down with him. For the rest of the night, they had no discussion of the business while he and Damar were here - nothing having to do with the war - and spent the rest of the night in each other's arms before he took her to the bed - no lovemaking because they couldn't risk hurting both mother and child. He watched her fall asleep first, brushing locks of brown hair from her delicate face and kissed her lips, whispering the three words before wrapping his arm around her and above the bump so he could drift off beside her, allowing the dreamworld to take them both back to Kurill Prime.

~o~

Weyoun was gone by the morning, but him with her last night was all she needed, and the loneliness had subsided for now. She sighed and laid back against the pillow; it was her day off, so now she and Weyoun could have their chat through the thread of their eternal bond.

 _Remember how we...got off to that "rough" start when you came to my sparring room?_ she asked him, running her hands over her belly, the baby stirring with the rest of her stomach. Weyoun was laughing as he, too, remembered how they quarreled over their differences until it ended when she blurted out that he had the most beautiful eyes she'd ever seen, and then she ran to her quarters for him to follow her - and led to something more than a one-night stand.

 _I will never forget that night. Nor my..."proprosition", which I have accepted you will never support the Dominion._ His reply was sadder than she ever recalled. _But that has not stopped us..._ Then his voice became sly, making her laugh. _You were the one to make the suggestion that we mate. I'm happy we did. It was the best night of my life. But it is so hard to believe it has been...nine months. It felt like an eternity, a never-ending circle._

She was tempted to reach behind her shoulder to touch the Celtic tree which had also found its way into her lover's skin during their first night together. _Eternity means no beginning and no end._

 _Correct you are._

 _So, I realized this just now..._ Recalling their first time left her in a stage she hadn't felt since before and a few weeks after she became pregnant. _...but how about we vocalized our states of arousal and act it out if we can't be together this way?_

He seemed stunned. _By means of...self-pleasuring while voicing what we are acting out?_ That was exactly what she meant. He chuckled in response. _Well, I admit, I have never pleasured myself, but I don't suppose it'd do harm. There is always a first time. How should we start, love?_

She was already undoing the sash of her dress and pulling it open to show her whole body as he remembered - with the exception of this bulging roundness that took over her small, firm sculpture in a matter of seven months - and helped open his vision so he could see her...and the results were instantaneous. Weyoun was alone in his personal room aboard the Cardassian vessel, and he was undressing like she was. But there was no way she could roll onto her stomach because she couldn't rock with pressure for the baby, so she settled on rising to her knees, after reaching over to her nightstand and opening the top drawer for the flavored lube she had all this time but hadn't used yet. It was a refreshing blend of ripe raspberries and juicy lime. She popped the cap off and dabbed enough to cover her palm - enough to last without going back to the bottle for more.

 _Possessed that all this time and never bothered bringing that to my attention?_ Weyoun teased when he sensed this. Already, he was naked and spread out atop the Cardassian hell-bed with his manhood erect and shaking between his legs. But that wasn't the half of it; his musculature was stronger than she last saw him. The working out sessions had hardened his body and transformed him into more than just a diplomat...but he had yet to face a real weapons match. _I knew you would find me irresistible._ Weyoun's smile was as seductive as his hands roaming over his body for her psychic vision to see: they moved over his throat and down to his shoulders, over his carved chest where the small nipples were hard as hers were, then his strong stomach and stopped above what rested between his spread thighs, pausing to finger the black curls and twist some around a finger or two. Mia's heart thundered as she fought back a moan that she would do the same to herself soon, which made Weyoun even more aroused than he was himself. _Go ahead and be the first._

Her breasts were aching when she started there with her clean hand, massaging the heavy flesh and nipples which awaited with milk for the child as soon as she was born. Then she ghosted over her bulge and curved downwards like running over a hilltop until she reached the bottom with her other hand, the gel gliding satiny smooth over and into her sex, that immensely refreshing sensation reuniting with the nerves that the swollen pink flesh contained. Moaning with Weyoun as she saw him still fingering his lower mound with one hand and stroking his erection with the other, she fell to her side, halfway turning upwards so she could spread her legs and imagine with Weyoun being together again.

And most of all, she couldn't believe they were having a baby girl, and forgot - for the moment - her fear of her father's reaction and focused on him welcoming a granddaughter when that day came.

~o~

Damar bared his teeth as he hissed at the viewscreen he surveyed on his own, taking another swing of kanar as he decided to keep an eye on Weyoun while they made the journey home - but Weyoun wouldn't be so lucky. Who was currently on previously said screen and...

Naked - making him ill because he absolutely loathed the Dominion ambassador ever since they met, with his smooth sarcasm and chilling politeness...hands roaming over every inch of his body including between his legs - now Damar couldn't help but get a twitch of his own, as much as he tried to fight it down...body writhing with pleasure as he acted out whatever the Vorta were known to do, and he had yet to learn more about the little alien's people besides the cloning process...

And then he heard Weyoun _moan,_ and not just wordlessly, but a NAME came from his lips: _"Mia..."_

Damar felt his face split in half as he grinned, his grip almost enclosing around the empty glass of kanar as a brilliant idea formed. Weyoun was having fantasies about this...Mia. Would that be...Captain Sisko's _daughter_? He was about to find out without a moment to lose, but he had to be discreet if he didn't want to be caught and tried for murder and treason.

~o~

Weyoun flinched and opened his eyes, seeing blurs before focusing his attention on the scaled visage before him. "Damar," he spat, finding his arms raised above him and shackled into place to the ceiling, "what is the meaning of this?" Looking down, he saw that he was still without his clothes, making him flush with humiliation and fury. "You dare to degrade me for what? Revenge? You hold me with contempt all that much you decided to take things THIS far?"

The voice - not Mia - whispered at the back of his head that Damar had seen his back once again, and none other than the eternal tree he shared with Mia was on the skin behind his left shoulder. He faintly recalled falling asleep after the "session", Mia the same, before the door to his room buzzed, but he was too tired to answer, much less see anyone, and against his wishes, the door opened and in strolled Damar himself. The last thing Weyoun remembered was he demanded he show respect before blacking out, and he guessed from a hypospray. Now he stood here before the Gul, his naked form chained to the ceiling. He kept his mental blocks between Mia and himself, so she wouldn't suffer and see whatever he was about to endure.

Damar was laughing and shaking his head, and from where he was, Weyoun could still smell the kanar off his breath. "You're getting warmer, my 'friend', and what's going to happen will come as no surprise. Because of two reasons. One -" He turned back and held up a finger. "- you're right that I despise you, because you're so smug and unapologetic, think you're better than me just because the Founder loves you best. And second..." Another finger, and that sealed it all. "...you and this Mia girl. Captain Sisko's daughter, if I'm not mistaken. Should explain that marking now that I remember _where_ I first saw it."

Weyoun tightened his jaw as he remained stone-still in his spot, body rigid as a statue as he watched with his eyes as Damar began to circle him like a predator. He knew about him and Mia...he pieced it together about the marking on his shoulder. But he said nothing, out of defiance and infuriating the Cardassian even more. "How long have you and her...been in this little affair? Since I know no Vorta has this." He raised a gloved hand and placed it where the Celtic tree symbol, the very sensation making Weyoun's teeth bare and let loose a hiss at the shameless, vile touch. He was disgraced enough, but Gul Damar wasn't having enough of it.

"Aren't you going to say something that will 'save' your skin?" Something cold and sharp had placed itself on that spot, and not long after, Weyoun cried out as a pain shot through his nerves and muscles as a blade pierced through the flesh, severing a part of that never-ending image - and causing Mia some pain, too. "Well, Weyoun, how long?"

He gritted his teeth, squeezing his eyes shut as the pain became greater when the knife dug itself deeper into his flesh and muscle. "Nine...months..." His answer caused the work to stop, and Damar sounded even more smug as he withdrew the dagger. Weyoun's heart beat in an unsteady, heavy rhythm as he took a few deep, shallow breaths to try and calm it.

"Nine months. When did that start, hm? While you and Dukat visited Deep Space 9 regarding the late former Legate Tekeny Ghemor? I don't know any other reason besides that." He wouldn't tell him anymore, and as a consequence, his backside received a brutal strike, bruising his pride more than it already was. "I suppose that must be why Gul Dukat never took her into his bed, but I know my old mentor. There had to be another reason why he didn't touch the girl. Could you tell me why, 'friend'?" he sneered, moving to stand in front of Weyoun, who narrowed his eyes to slits and curled his lip in return. He would NEVER betray his lover and their child.

"I won't tell you anything, Damar. You'll have to do better than this to force me to answer to anything."

His jaw was punched square; the salty taste of blood began on his bottom lip which had split open, and a small river of red might as well be pouring down his chin. He gasped for air and heaved when his lungs suffered impact soon enough; Damar decided to take the pleasure of assaulting his precious oxygen supply while he was bound.

"You're right. I won't let you get away unpunished, because I know they'll simply clone you again once I'm finished with you."

He deliberately let Weyoun know he was going to kill him after his sweet brand of torture was finished. He wasn't surprised, but at the same time, he wished he could fight off this soldier of a man, but his hands were bound above his head. "You wouldn't dare," he spat, trying to regain his dignity. "There will be enough evidence you leave on me that will point to you." But the gleam in his eyes said otherwise, and he had that terrible sensation that Damar would get away with whatever he planned. He was doomed.

More pain, this time to his abdomen. The back of his left shoulder was bleeding - which meant the tree of life itself was oozing and losing its source - and trailing down his back, over that specific side of his buttocks. Weyoun felt like he wanted to vomit, but it never came; his vision was dotted with black and white altogether. He closed his eyes and lowered his head, unable to look at Damar anymore, but he would continue to hear his words.

"While we occupied Terok Nor, do you know what Dukat promised me when I complained of your arrogance and disrespect towards us both, Weyoun?" He pursed his lips and held his breath when the cold steel touched him once more, but it was nowhere near his abdomen, chest or any other part...but down _there_ , where the remainder of his self-respect depended on it. And what had enraptured Mia's body and delivered the seed his own body gave her. The tip pushed past the bush and touched his skin - and now he was afraid. "He said that someday I would teach you that lesson...and that day has come, old 'friend'."

 **Reuniting the lovers and discussing their baby was a blessing that I am proud of. :) But to do THAT to Weyoun was the hardest thing I had to do, and to Mia; oh, for her to endure that while she's PREGNANT was even more so. There will be more expansion in the upcoming chapter. My heart is broken as much as the rest of yours, but we are FAR from over.**

 **Aurora West's "Data Venia" was the inspiration for the torture scene. That story is, as some others said, the perfect exploration of the lacking of Damar and Weyoun's relationship.**


	25. Descent

**Just note that there is definite angst in this chapter, without giving any spoilers as usual. You've been warned before.**

Chapter Twenty-Four

Descent

Weyoun's heartbeat was at an erratic, unnatural pace as he felt the terrible agony of the dagger cutting the skin beneath his pubic hair. If he were another being, he would have asked why his tormentor was doing this to him, but Damar made clear his hatred of him because he knew he was better than Damar, because the latter was merely a figurehead for their plans in this war - and because he knew about his love affair with the enemy captain's daughter. But Weyoun would not give him the satisfaction of knowing that he and the woman he loved were having a baby. He was willing to protect them both even if the Cardassian leader knew of his relationship.

Unfortunately, through the pain, his link to Mia's mind had broken and opened the portal to hers and showed what he was enduring, not just feeling the tear in the symbol they shared in their flesh. _Oh, God, Weyoun, what is he DOING to you?!_

He squeezed his eyes tightly shut, feeling the blood seep from his groin and trail down his legs. _I'm so sorry,_ was all he could manage before the knife found itself straight on his limp, vulnerable member...

~o~

Her body was in convulsions with the unspeakable torture she felt her lover undergo at the hands of the man who had been Gul Dukat's lackey. Her heart was breaking like glass and shattering into millions to trillions - countless - little shards of pieces than you could count. The fire of despair engulfed that place where her heart had been and surged through her veins, arteries and all important nerves...consuming her like an inferno and destroying every fiber of her being...

 _Weyoun...Weyoun, no...! You can't leave me - you can't leave US!_ She clutched at her swollen belly without crushing it and hurting the baby, still howling. _You son of a bitch, Damar, I'll KILL YOU!_ She mentally screamed at the Cardassian - that _murderer_ \- who took the man she loved all to satisfy his personal vendetta against him and the Dominion. He was covering his tracks to save his own neck; he was as low as his former master was, but none of her hatred for him would bring her Weyoun back.

Weyoun was gone... _gone_...

That horrible word played in her head over and over, and no matter how hard she tried to shove it down - she tried to tell herself in her suffering that he would be cloned again, and she would feel as well as see him again, but who knew when THAT would be...but would he be the same one she remembered? His next incarnation would carry his predecessor's memories, but it wasn't the one who loved her and fathered their child...

Heartbreak, agony and grief overtook all reason for the rest of the night until morning. It was like she died along with Weyoun and never came back, but she tried to assure herself - and their child, who was her responsibility - that everything would return to normal once he awoke. But in the meantime, she was a complete wreck that when she went to work, Quark and Leeta noticed.

"Why, Mia, what's the matter?" Leeta rushed over to her after her dabo table was over for some time before more customers showed up. "You look like you're going to die!" she gasped.

"Let her breathe, Leeta," Quark scolded as he came to join, eyes narrowing as he looked at his other favorite dabo girl, currently two months short of due date. "Don't tell me you got a broken heart."

She stiffened; he didn't read through her, did he? "Just a nightmare I had last night. Can't remember what it was, but I remember for sure it was...terrible," she lied smoothly, though her voice shook enough that she prayed it worked. "I feel really slow, and I'm sorry, Quark."

He scoffed. "Normally, I would -"

"Mia, Leeta!" All three looked up to see Ziyal bouncing in like an excited schoolgirl with Garak on her arm, grinning like that young girl again, and for only a moment, Mia's mood was light as it could be before she would sink behind closed doors as soon as her shift ended so she would weep for her dead lover. No one - not even Odo, Kira and Dr. Bashir - should ever know. The Vorta were clones, but that wasn't the only reason for her refusal to tell, especially with what she saw happen to him. It was because they had other concerns dealing with the war and deaths to even worry about her heartache.

"Well, Mr. Garak, what's the occasion?" Quark said as he greeted him like all his customers. "Did you decide to pop it or something? Because I can get you both a holosuite for more -" The couple gaped at his boldness at hinting their "private life", and Mia stepped in. She knew her boss well, but today was not the day for insulting anyone.

"Quark, really, you shouldn't be so inappropriate like that." She turned her attention back to the pair and managed a smile the best she could. "Well, go on, you two. The occasion?" Ziyal held out her left hand, and Mia gasped at the literal answer when she saw the gold band set with a small moonstone-like gem. Simple yet enchanting. "You two are...?"

"We're getting married!" Ziyal squealed excitedly, jumping up and back into Garak's arms, making him laugh nervously as he returned the embrace. "We're getting married, everyone!" she called out for the whole bar to hear, and applause roared up for the happy couple. Leeta was jumping up and down herself for them, and Quark managed his own response in his own way. Everyone was truly happy for them - except one, whose heart ached for the latest loss that hurt more than the first incarnation she met, and suddenly she felt like she needed to see Dr. Bashir now, for she stood up and walked away from the attention on the newly engaged pair for the nearest comm system she could find in the bar.

~o~

Julian Bashir had to admit he was shocked to know that a simple nightmare had sent the seven-month pregnant Mia into the state of distress she was in. He was no counselor, but he would do the best he could to ease her depression - mild was the wrong word of choice, because he sensed something much deeper, but to bombard her about it would make her worse than she was now. "Would it be wrong to assume that I've been under a lot of stress because I'm having a baby by myself?"

Her question took him by surprise. Part of him thought so, but Mia was a strong woman who could survive anything. He took her in, wearing that light blue dress with the darker blue bodice, and cradling her stomach. Bashir knelt down with the tricorder when he gestured for her to move her hands away. He ran it over to check the signs of the child; it was perfectly healthy and would arrive on time in two more months, perhaps one if it made its own decision to lose its patience. He laughed to himself, which got the mother's attention.

"What's so funny, Doctor?" Mia joked.

"Nothing, really. Only the fact that this little one could make it out sooner than expected."

She snorted. "I hope not. I'm not ready yet even though Dad, Jake and Kasidy helped me get my quarters prepped with a room for her." Julian looked at her in surprise; he had expected her to think she was having a girl, but it could always be a boy. She seemed so _sure_ it was a female.

"Do you wish the...father was here?" Julian asked carefully. He had a slight suspicion as to who the father was, and was positive Odo knew the truth, but friends never betrayed the other. And Mia couldn't tell her father for her own reasons, not that he blamed her.

She didn't answer him, and he looked into her eyes to see a wave of immense sadness coming over them. Now he knew that her nightmare had to do with his question regarding the child's father. She was in a depression because he wasn't here, and Julian knew he had to do something to change this. "I'm sorry, Mia," he apologized, putting the tricorder down and using that hand to cup her chin, raising her face to see the irises glazing. "I'm going to give you something to keep you from experiencing negative emotions, something that won't even clash with those makara herbs I give you. And speaking of which..." He cracked a mischievous grin. "...you stopped taking them when you're supposed to."

Mia laughed and swatted his hand away, her mood lifted by his change of topic. "Yeah, because I feel what Major Kira did while she was pregnant. Like they're from somewhere on a Ferengi's body, and she said from Quark's ear." Their shared laughter had her rocking back in her chair and shrieking herself.

~o~

Bashir's meds each time she suffered a depression fit helped, but the pain was still there. He even managed to convince Quark to keep her off work until the baby was born, but even though he was generous enough, it didn't feel right to be off her feet for two more months. Mia felt useless, but Jake visited her as often as he could, as well as Bashir on each appointment she had with him. Quark even offered her the holosuite he gave her, to pamper her without having her get up and add more problems to physical fitness.

There would be no way she would tell anyone the true depth of her condition, as much as it wasn't good for her baby. Pregnant human women were known to have high levels of stress and temperament, but this wasn't normal, and she wasn't even a doctor. On the outside, she was the same to everyone else - smiling and happy despite the war going on - but on the inside, she was another story because of her severed connection with the father of her child.

Every day for the next three days was the same: she woke up and ate as usual, then spent the day with Jake or just reading and spending time in the holosuite, but at night she would cry herself to sleep after taking what was a form of the antidepressant on Earth; this version was safe for her and the baby, if anyone ever wondered, so no overdosage or risk to the blood and such. Everything kept her stable and from going into a full depression, but it did nothing to erase the void in her heart. Even though she tried assuring herself that the new Weyoun would find her again...IF he would remember her and their baby.

Speaking of children, Odo and Kira were talking about having _children_ of all things during this time of danger.

"Do you really think it's a good idea to bring a child in the middle of a war?" Mia asked her on the fourth day when the major had some time from the bridge with her father. "Not that you shouldn't," she added hastily, "because _I_ am -" She motioned for her bulge with both hands. "- but how are you going to have a child if Odo can't give you one? And you're a fighter constantly on the field when I'm not."

Nerys laughed and waved her hand dismissively, after taking a sip of sweet berry juice from the replicator. "We talked about a...sperm donor as you humans call it, and Odo has no objections, but we don't know who is up for it yet. And I know the risks; I was pregnant once, remember?"

"How could I forget?" Mia answered before calling to the computer to replicate another glass of juice. "But this is against the Dominion, so there's more than vengeful Cardassian individuals and petty disputes." And losses of loved ones and friends every day. "And chances of Odo returning to his people in the end once the fighting was over, as much as I hate him for wanting to do so."

Kira nodded somberly, looking down at the table. "You're right, as much as I hate to think of that, too. I don't want to lose him, since he's the one who has always been there, the first man to ever be beside me this long and this far. I feel like I can't let him go back to those things called his people, especially after everything they've done."

Mia wished he wouldn't have to do that, but she tried not to think about it too much, either. There was only one solution she could think of, but even that wouldn't be easy to do than spoken. She might be struggling with her own issues, but even losses and distance never prevented her from anything. "What if you and him were...married? I know that's between you guys, but take it from me. Binding two individuals together and therefore bringing their families together."

Nerys looked shocked at the suggestion, but before she could answer, Dr. Bashir's voice sounded through her comm badge. _"Dr. Bashir to Major Kira."_

"Go ahead."

 _"I have just gotten a possible donor for you and Odo, ready whenever you are."_

She felt like gasping with the major. There was possible hope for her dear friend in these bleak times, but before she could answer, a light turned on inside her heart and soul - and coursed throughout her whole body. She felt her whole body go light and lean forward slightly, ignoring Kira's exclamation of concern altogether as she felt her being reawaken as she felt _him_ return to life.

~o~

When he opened his eyes, the first thing his poor eyesight registered upon clearing as far as it would go was the cold, steel environment and the bubbling glass chambers as well as their gaseous counterparts. He heard the voices and assumed they were of great importance - he was in the cloning chamber, now that his memory was slowly coming to.

Weyoun _six_ blinked and slowly sat up from the long table under the great light fixture, spotting immediately that he was naked and shivering in his newly activated stage. He suddenly felt vulnerable, being exposed at birth - correction, rebirth - and wrapped his arms around himself, one arm over his chest and the other between his legs to cover his crotch. And then a soft yet firm voice reached his ears.

"Welcome back, my friend."

He looked up and saw the familiar face of Borath, his oldest friend from all five previous lifetimes, overseeing all methods of cloning. Weyoun smiled slightly but wasn't sure how to begin a new conversation. "Indeed." He looked around himself, wondering if he would see the Female Changeling anytime soon - or worse, Damar. The last thing he remembered through his predecessor's eyes was pain and torture that was too horrific to repeat aloud, and be disbelieved based on what transpired next. "What happened to the last...Weyoun?" he asked Borath hesitantly, the latter sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I'm afraid he...killed himself. At least, that's what it looks like, and the investigation is still underway. Damar was on that transporter from Deep Space 9 back to Cardassia with him when it took place." The Vorta scientist shook his head. "Vorta don't even commit suicide unless they are taken prisoner, activate their termination implants. This doesn't make sense, my friend, if you ask me. It begs the question about Damar himself, but he's been questioned and searched, no evidence found."

Of course there wouldn't be. Damar had made a promise and followed through on it. He sighed and lowered his arms, choosing to bring his legs up and against his chest, wrapping his arms around his knees, no longer caring about his exposed nudity, oblivious to the thermal blanket wrapped around his body. "Rest assured, the Founder is expecting to see her most loyal 'solid'," Borath said in a mild joking manner, but he couldn't laugh - he didn't have it in him - and slid to his feet without a word, "back in action. And if Damar really did kill Weyoun 5, he will think twice before trying to off you, my friend."

Borath seemed to believe more than what everyone else thought as a "suicide", and how right he was. Weyoun 6 currently recalled his predecessor's depridation at the mercy of _Damar's_ blade - and he wasn't the only one who shared it. It had been someone else who had been linked not only in mind, but body and soul, to the last Weyoun. Someone who was the daughter of the enemy but also meant near and dear to him...

He had a _lover_. A distant one but nevertheless an important link to the chain of his life. And her name was _Mia_.

"Weyoun, I suggest you better get dressed and cover...this up." Borath reached behind him and touched the back of his left shoulder - where Damar had pierced the skin as part of his sadistic game - and made Weyoun wince at the contact. He twisted his head as far as it could go and saw something dark and ornate imprinted into his flesh. "So the Founder doesn't see this."

If his memory was correct...oh, this was part of the mythos and tradition of his people. Very rarely when members of his species mated with another bearing a work of art on their bodies - notably humans - the Vorta would receive that marking onto their own bodies, binding them with their lover for eternity. _The soul mate link_.

He remembered everything then, about him and Mia:

 _My progenitor's fourth incarnation meeting her...eye to eye contact...first conversation in the mess hall...her family history of being adopted by Captain Benjamin Sisko following the death of her family...asking if he longed to be free from slavery under the Founders, and his reluctance to leave the Dominion for her...first kiss before his mission to the death..._

 _Fifth incarnation...reunion and more of her pressing him to join her so they could be together...blissful consummation, bodies joining as one...conception..._

He paused right there, even while he was in the middle of getting dressed in front of his scientist friend and longtime colleague. _A child...there is a child. And she is alone in raising it, without ME._

And he saw the reasons why they were separated: _the Dominion-Cardassian alliance forced the Federation to evacuate, overtaking her home, keeping them apart...he accused her reporter brother, the enemy captain's son, of bias against the Dominion...she distanced from him, chose her family and friends of the adversaries to the Dominion over him...he aided in the destruction of the minefield before the wormhole between the Alpha and Gamma Quadrants...ordered the imprisonments of her friends and family only for their freedom granted in time for her father's fleet to return and send the Dominion into retreat..._

"Weyoun?"

He looked up at Borath and managed a little smile. "I'm sorry. I'll be going now," he said, bowing his head forward and leaving the lab to meet with the Founder and Damar. However, he couldn't stop the growing fear, not only of them both - but the fear that he was in fact _defecting_ from his people and his gods who created them. All because of the memories from his predecessor and the knowledge that he was the father of the child carried by a woman who belonged to the Federation, the Dominion's greatest rival in the galaxy.

~o~

"Mia, what happened?" Kira was looking her over as she moved around the table to help her stand, but Mia smiled reassuringly and put her hand over the major's.

"I'm fine. Just...excited for you and Odo. I was overwhelmed at the news for you both. Should I wish you both good luck with acquiring this donor?"

Nerys looked her over for a second, not believing her for a second before she put on a similar smile. "In a month or two. Odo and I aren't in a hurry, but we want it eventually...to make up for both our losses before," she said softly. "Even if that baby Changeling and Kirayoshi are irreplaceable." Although the pain stopped and the good memories settled in, the loneliness never left your being, and Mia knew all of that from memory.

"I know exactly what you mean."

"Ziyal asked us to be there and pick out a wedding dress with Garak; actually," Nerys added with a slight laugh, "he's MAKING her dress, but she wants you and I to help pick out material, silhouette and so on ahead of time so he can put her favorites all in one. I still can't believe she's marrying him." She burst out into louder laughter, but not to make a joke about this. She was as much happy for the girl she regarded a daughter as much as she did Mia. "She made the right decision, better than choosing her father."

"Certainly did," Mia agreed, wanting to do something fun and active for a change, but only if Bashir gave her permission. She escorted the major out of her quarters before turning around and pressing her back against the door, looking up at the ceiling as she felt Weyoun's presence. "Weyoun..." she whispered aloud, and in the link, "...do you remember me?"

~o~

He barely saw the information on the PADD concerning the latest loss of Dominion and Federation vessels - civilians included - and an immense wave of emotion overcame him as he thought of those lives lost. That voice at the back of his head whispered all of this was wrong, this continual war over the wormhole and growing to losing supplies of white for the Jem'Hadar, as well as the Founders' clear loathing of the solids themselves. But there was no way he could go to the Female Changeling because he was...feeling sympathy and grief for the lost lives. She would simply state that it was a "necessary sacrifice". It was his first day as a new man, and everything settled in so fast.

And it began not long after he was handed the first reports of today that he HEARD her voice in the air, and no one was in his quarters but himself: _Weyoun, do you remember me?_

The PADD report forgotten for the moment, he lowered it and leaned back in the chair behind his desk, responding back through the telepathic connection. _Yes...Mia. I'm here._

 _Oh, God!_ Her response took him aback altogether even though he knew how she was feeling - she had been with his predecessor, and he remembered mentally and not been with her physically. Weyoun 5 loved her as much as he loved his gods, but this wasn't just the devoted loyalty to serve and protect; it ran much deeper than that. One person to love was like loving the universe as a whole, and if one thing went wrong, everything was ripped asunder. Like a chain broken in half because of one little link. He remembered how much pain and grief his predecessor caused her while his people and their allies occupied DS9, and those of her brother and their friends. He also recalled how Jake Sisko liked him when they first met only for that petty but unforgiveable disagreement over his censored news reports on the occupation, and how Mia struck him down and voiced her heartbreak, threatening to keep him away from their child. Mia was forced to choose the life she had over the one Weyoun 5 lived, and that was what made their love difficult. Their warring factions would continue to fight, and there was nothing they could do about that.

But that never stopped their everlasting devotion, now did it?

Weyoun felt his heart beat faster than before. _Mia, I'm afraid I am still trying to adjust to my new life. I am recalling all my predecessor's memories, but I am not the same man. I feel...heartbroken about what you and he endured, from your distressing, different sides and separation - and bringing the child into the universe alone as long as this war rages._ He stopped himself there; he _was_ thinking of this, as he found himself looking at the PADD once more, as though he was actually defecting. But if he _was_ , then he would be no longer considering himself a leader of the Dominion...

Mia spoke, interrupting his train of thought. _You're not like the Weyoun I knew,_ she repeated. _You...regret everything that happened, and you've been alive for barely a day._ She was disbelieved as much as he was. It seemed they needed a lot more time to get to know each other; it would be wrong to use the word "again" in the sentence, because he was a different man, and felt like one, too.

 _I have, and I do not know why I feel so different,_ he responded as he read the report over again, and soon he felt like he was going to melt in his chair, into something soft and liquid-formed. The memories with Mia were softening him, making him see everything different than the last one did. She wanted him more than anything else in the world, wanted him there to help her raise their child - a daughter, his predecessor sensed the last time they were together before Damar took him away from her - and see how precious life was if he sacrificed his service to the Dominion all for them. These death tolls were an addition, even though he didn't personally know these soldiers and civilians whose lives were cost.

He heard AND felt her crying again. She'd been broken apart when she felt and saw his predecessor die - and he loathed both that man as well as the murderer himself, Damar, for thinking he could break him when he found out about the passionate affair and the unborn conceived as his own senseless act of personal revenge. Weyoun felt his body quiver as he leaned forward in his seat and his legs gave way beneath him. He wished he was over there, with her, to hold her as he sobbed with her through their link as they rejoiced at reuniting but grieving over everything that transpired.

 _My beloved...I'm so sorry. You did not deserve the pain my predecessor, the Dominion, and Damar caused you. I wish I could...change everything. Make it better and end this war if I had the power._

 **After reading "Original sin" by littlegreenGul, my heart broke into millions of pieces at its perfection of exploring the "defective" Weyoun 6. I felt what Odo had called him as - a human, although that isn't what he is - he is a feeling being who could have made it alive and became a real man who answers to no one. :) That was the purpose for him in this story from the very beginning.**


	26. Anger, Hate and Defection

Chapter Twenty-Five

Anger, Hate and Defection

A month had gone by since his awakening, but while Weyoun followed in the steps of his predecessor and carried a cool air, he wasn't the same on the inside. He could not stand Damar, but he did his best to keep hostilities in place simply because he knew the truth of the death of the last Weyoun and the motivations behind it, but no one would know but the two of them. He had it in him to sneer at his drinking which he remembered smelling foul on his breath in Weyoun 5's last moments.

However, each time he looked at Damar and his kanar, recalling all those times his predecessor told the man that their sorrows would never be washed away by drinking. But if he detected it correctly, the war was getting to Damar as much as it was getting to himself, as much as he did his best to hide it from the Cardassian and everyone around them - including the Female Changeling. His former master and mentor had traded their people and homeworld for the Alpha Quadrant as a price, and now Damar was responsible for what Dukat left behind. It was taking a toll on him.

As much as these continual negotiations and rising death counts of warriors and civilians that kept coming in. Including the Jem'Hadar who fought when the Vorta were not made for combat.

But if the Vorta weren't made for combat, then WHY did Weyoun possess such impressive physical prowess that no one but Damar and his loyal Jem'Hadar knew about?

Mia was trained with defense and self-defense from her father, the Klingon Lt. Commander Worf and other members of the station's crew - and then herself when their times with her sessions ran out. When she linked with the fifth Weyoun, she transferred her physical abilities to him so that he was stronger than before, and therefore carried it onto his successor - which was the current Weyoun. And in time, his body became like that of a warrior, which he noticed the next day after his awakening. Perhaps he could challenge Damar to a match of sparring with Jem'Hadar blade work.

And today he certainly did, he thought with a smug grin of satisfaction when he met with Damar that afternoon, today, in the gymnasium.

"You know, the last Weyoun dared to challenge me this way not long before his death," Damar dared to say as soon as the doors closed behind them and he proceeded to remove the leather outing of his attire, making Weyoun whirl around and eye him like a savage animal, his veins burning with the desire to kill him at the end of their little dueling session. "I got curious about his activities when the Founder wasn't looking, and he was up to practice with weapons belonging to his Jem'Hadar, and I never once thought the Vorta were capable of mastering such abilities."

Weyoun snarled furiously; he might have begun to soften about the war, but his aggression for the Cardassian was stronger than ever. "Your mockery of my people and our faith hasn't changed a bit," he noted, getting a sarcastic chuckle and a shake of the head.

"Oh, my faith hasn't diminished, but there are just still some things I don't understand about you." His eyes hardened, even when Weyoun removed the last of his tunic to expose his sculpted chest to match him; unlike the Vorta, the Cardassian's well-muscled torso was scaled and plated with something else resembling smooth leather. "Like, you're the same smug creature I wanted to toss out of the airlock like I told Dukat once before -" Weyoun narrowed his eyes and smirked at the same time; at least that part of him hadn't changed, and that was pride in himself. "- but you're...softer in regards to the losses of Dominion and Cardassian fighters, and those other lives in the middle. Is it my imagination or has the war finally gotten to you after your predecessor's experiences?"

He dared to insult his memories, and it made Weyoun burn and long to make the first move to rush for the kill. Although it didn't stop the returning fear of discovery that he was defecting - he didn't WANT to be defective, but he was, and it was beyond his control - and he took a slow, deliberate step forward, standing less than two feet away from his opponent. "I would bite my tongue if I were you, Damar. You don't want to get hurt," he hissed. His new form of protectiveness stemmed from his heart, which held only one - no, two - beings in his life, that the previous Weyoun had but should have taken full advantage of.

Damar stared down at him in stunned surprise before bursting out into laughter. "Your predecessor dared to make the move on me, overpower me, but he was bold enough to take his shirt off and show what began my suspicions proven true -"

Weyoun's right fist raised and collided with Damar's jaw, the force coursing through his system so powerful and exhilarating that he enjoyed every bit of it, even more so when the Cardassian was sent backwards, sailing in the air and crashing into the wall behind him. Weyoun watched with full-on satisfaction as the other man grimaced and worked to raise himself, rubbing his face and glaring at him in return.

"That was some nerve. At least you're making the same mistake your predecessor did in attacking me."

"And he had a very good reason," Weyoun replied. "But he was on his own and harnessing what his beloved transferred to him - until you showed up. You had it coming, Damar. Now get up and fight me like a real man."

The larger man was in front of him then, roaring with doubled rage as he threw a punch that Weyoun didn't dodge in time and ended up getting it to his cheek; he fell onto his backside and was stunned for the moment. He tried to get up, but Damar kicked him down again, his body flopping in the process like a fish. Weyoun wasn't fully used to this like his predecessor, so he tried to dodge Damar's kicks and punches only to get bruises and numbing bursts of pain in those places. If he didn't pull himself together now - _Do it now,_ Mia's voice whispered. _Show him what you got, like the one before you._

 _This is for you and the baby, then. I won't give up now._ And with that, while rolling onto his side and unleashing the most animalistic of cries as his leg whipped up and struck Damar below his waist - where he vividly remembered Weyoun 5 being depraved and ultimately dying from blood loss, just left there after being released from his bonds and too weak and humiliated. Remembering and feeling the anguish, he stood up and threw himself in the air, his body spinning and his leg lashing out to deliver another kick, this time to Damar's plated chest and sending him backwards, this time falling onto his rear end, making Weyoun smirk at the feeling his rival must be experiencing. Now he knew what it felt like to have your dignity crushed.

Jem'Hadar _kar'takin_ and combat daggers were splendidly arrayed with their phaser rifles and pistols, and other Cardassian armory, against the wall Weyoun now found himself cartwheeling over to, his body abuzz with energy and excitement that he was unleashing his emotions towards the man before him. He grabbed one _kar'takin_ for himself and then tossed the other to Damar, who had gotten himself together and was ready for the next match. He caught the blade without trouble, his lip curling with vengeance. Ready to kill Weyoun and not feel guilty, just like last time.

"Try harder," Weyoun said, reciting the words Mia had said one time that he recalled too well. "Try AGAIN." At the challenge, Damar unleashed another mighty shout and threw himself forward, but Weyoun was ready for him, whirling his body around Japanese ninja style - a culture and a warrior Mia gave him an ancient history of - and raised the _kar'takin_ only to bring it down and clash with Damar's weapon. The hate and fury he released was beyond his control, wishing he could kill the leader of Cardassia right here and right now, but death was too easy to savor, and that meant losing an ally. There was only one Damar in existence when Weyoun was suitable for cloning -

He stopped right there, paranoia coursing through his blood, and as a result, almost lost concentration for Damar to take advantage of his distraction and whacked his blade out of his hands, the impressive steel clanging loudly to the floor. Weyoun had no time to dodge a kick beneath him that sent him off his feet and onto his back so he was looking up at his enemy, the opposite _kar'takin_ pointing in the area between his face and heart. Damar's face was smug now, just like when he had the last Weyoun trapped and at his mercy. He really thought he won this round.

"Surrender, my 'friend'. I want to kill you again, but since I know they'll only keep bringing you back, I get to enjoy you on your backside this way."

Weyoun spat back in his face. "I'll NEVER surrender to you."

Damar's face contorted into an ugly snarl. "Vorta scum." He drew the _kar'takin_ back and almost brought it down when Weyoun threw his hand out, a powerful energy force sending Damar back and losing hold on his weapon, which was now on the floor, and against the wall. Certain he'd subdued him, his body refreshed, Weyoun rose and took in a few deep breaths, exhaling slowly. His skin felt like it was washed with fresh spring rain - he was actually pouring sweat now - and his heartbeat quickened its paces. Casually, he picked up Damar's _kar'takin_ first and then his, placing them back on the wall. He looked back to see Damar scowling at him, at being outmatched this time around, just like his predecessor when that time was less than what they experienced now.

"All of this has to do with that girl, and I know it," Damar said as he watched Weyoun put his shirt and tunic back on. "Your predecessor made the mistake and look what it cost him. As far as I know, the Founder knew all about it, and it's a miracle she hasn't caught on with _you_ just yet. Same goes for my observations of you outside this room. I'll might as well leave that to the Founder since I know enough. Maybe she'll have you killed instead of me this time soon enough."

And death was the last thing he expected to encounter, especially with the memory of his predecessor's death - and the excruciating agony of loss between him and Mia. As well as Weyoun 5's fear of losing her and the child. They were everything to him, but he couldn't risk being labeled defective and rebellious, and that meant replacing _him -_ the current Weyoun _-_ with a new clone, and a more obedient one at that. Mia wouldn't be happy with another Weyoun with more cold-blooded inhumanity, even worse than the one who fathered their unborn child. She and the child would never make it through, not through a forced marriage and aligning her family and alliance with the Dominion - and that counted the Founder's approval - and the baby never knowing its father.

Weyoun couldn't let this happen to them - or to himself.

As soon as he left Damar alone in the gymnasium, he pondered his thoughts all over again. So this was it, then: this war was wrong, all those deaths, and he knew better than to go to the Founder. He couldn't question her because that meant death and "rebirth" for him. Mia had suffered enough, and so had he. If there was one thing he would thank his predecessor for passing down to him, it was having a heart.

But what could he do now?

~o~

Even though things were still taking a turn for the worse during this war, Mia felt that things were getting better - and even more dangerous - for herself. Because ever since last month, it was like she was experiencing a new beginning spiritually, when she felt the change in the new Weyoun. She stopped taking the medicine Dr. Bashir gave her after a whole week, and he had been amazed she "recovered" so fast. And instead of crying to sleep out of heartbreak, she cried to sleep out of happiness. This change was for the better, for the both of them.

For his part, she felt his emotions whenever he thought about getting those reports on the frontlines and of her and the baby - as well as himself and mistreatment at times - he was crying more often when no one was around. And Damar was still rattling on him; their sparring sessions made her smile with pride that he was finally acting out his rage and hatred on the murder of the Weyoun who fathered the baby which would come soon as next month. But since he knew about their relationship, it meant trouble for them.

And now Weyoun was having panic attacks about being "defective". He worried that he was, and now it was settling in more and more lately that he was promising to leave the Dominion...and come to her when his predecessor should have done in the first place.

 _You remembered,_ she sent, _about when I asked the fourth if he ever wanted..._

 _To be free,_ he finished with a little smile which soon faded. _How could I ever forget that? I want nothing more than to come join you and your family and allies, but it won't be easy now that the time has come, and these are perilous times. Because I love you and the baby, and I want this war to end when it should have been finished months ago. These losses, placing blame on everyone...I can go on forever. This pain...it has to stop._

Mia's heart was clenching as she felt that pain slowly return, and she placed her hand over that specific place. _I know...but how are you going to get away?_ she asked worriedly, fearing the Founder and Damar discovering his leaving of Cardassia without permission...

 _I'm leaving now. I'm coming to you soon, but first I must contact Odo. I will return to you soon._

She was about to respond when he cut off their link, leaving her baffled as she sat there on the sofa in her father's quarters. He was leaving tomorrow for a few days, but he wasn't exactly happy while he was making dinner. "You worried about the conference, Dad?" she asked as she cradled her stomach and smelled the red Italian sauce. Finally she could have spaghetti without the meatballs. It wasn't that she didn't like meatballs - she LOVED them, especially the Swedish - but being pregnant meant not wanting certain things because you knew you wanted something else. Thank God next month she would return to normal once the kid popped out.

Ben looked up as he brought the dishes over to the table. "Huh? Oh, not at all," he said with a little chuckle. Mia stood up and joined him. Jake was coming soon - and Kasidy, of course. As a matter of fact, depending on his state of return, Benjamin would take her out on what he called a "reunion" date. They'd known each other for a couple years and were getting serious; Jake had been the matchmaker instead of Mia, for once, at that time. He made a wise decision thinking their father would be a perfect match for freighter captain Kasidy Yates. Things might have been a bit strained when he found out that she'd been involved with the smuggling to the Maquis and was forced to arrest her, but they got back together after she finished her sentence. Love was just so complicated yet managed to work in the end.

"Only that I intend to take the _Defiant_ on patrol as soon as I return from Bajor in four days, but that damned gravity is fluctuating. Can't have that waver in the stability and my men getting nauseated, myself included." He shook his head. "I'll have to get on Chief O'Brien about this in the morning. And this station needs so many repairs now as it is, but the _Defiant_ HAS to be ready when I get back." He stopped his tirade and looked at her with a smile, then looked her over in the flattering, V-neck, floral-and-leaf textured lace dress and finally settled on the waiting one in her body. "But enough business talk for tonight so I can spend time with my daughter and grandchild. How are you both doing now?"

Each day that passed, he was all the more excited at becoming a grandfather, and Mia had to ask him one time if he cared about the baby's species - half human and half whatever else it was - and his answer surprised her. "Of course. I accept new people every day regardless of their customs, so why would I treat my own grandchild any different just because its father isn't in its life - and the mother's?" His eyes had hardened then, making her flinch. It made the worry about discovering _Weyoun,_ ambassador of the Dominion, was the sperm owner return. And she knew that once Ben found out he defected to the Federation, he wouldn't be so willing to trust him so easily, but he HAD to accept them eventually. This was her life, after all.

"We're both doing great, and she keeps kicking, still," Mia said with a laugh before the door buzzed. Jake and Kasidy were here.

~o~

Odo had to admit he half-agreed with Nerys when he informed her of leaving at the request of the coded message sent to him by none other than "Gul Russol", his most trustworthy informant from Cardassia, but it had been months since they last spoke. Word had been that he was executed when Cardassia allied with the Dominion, so this could always be a trick. But it was a risk he was willing to take, all for his old friend. He owed him for his help regarding the attempt on Garak's life.

But what added more to the suspicions was that Russol insisted that _Mia Sisko_ come along.

Why would he ask for Mia, especially when she had one month left until her pregnancy was over? Odo had mentioned the girl once to Russol before, and it was a miracle he even remembered who she was. He had the feeling this contact had to do with bringing Mia for something...else. Something more elusive. He wanted to reply and refuse, but the message refused to receive. It seemed he had no choice but to comply and bring Mia with him.

Her father had just taken off for a conference on Bajor, and she wasn't working for Quark for another month, so now was the chance to see her and bring her with him. When she opened the doors and saw him, her jaw dropped as though not expecting him. "Odo!"

"We need to go," he informed her. They had no time to lose, after all, and the longer this was delayed - because he did not miss urgency by any means - the worse his doubts would get. "I received a message from an old informant who insists I meet with him on one of the barren moons, far from here, and that he might have...information that could help us win this war against the Dominion." Aside from the possibility it was a trick, Russol might have evaded capture and escaped intact, hid and kept tabs on the Dominion-Cardassian alliance, so he could be valuable for the Federation. "But he demands that you come with me." He looked her over again, seeing the eight months of pregnancy and at risk of any trouble on this trip.

She looked surprised, blinking a couple times. "He...asked me to come with you on a trip - while my father is away, and while I'm...?" She left her sentence hanging and motioned for her growth. Odo nodded, not liking this one bit.

"Yes. I couldn't respond because it wouldn't let me. We leave now, so please get a coat or something so we can get this over with." He hated being brusque on her, but he watched as she vanished for the moment and returned while fastening a lavender-colored silk tunic over her lace dress, paired with boots. "Alright, come on now." He led the way with her by his side, unable to fight off the seed of doubt planted as he authorized departure on the _Rio Grande._

Mia sat in the front passenger seat beside him, strapping in for the ride. He watched her from the corner of his eye as he set the course for the infertile moon rendezvous. "Tell me about this...Russol again?" she asked, out of habit and the need for conversation he supposed. Odo sighed.

"Well, we weren't exactly on the level you and I, Dr. Bashir and everyone else are, but we could count on each other and provide favors and insights when we could. I owe him this time for the last time involving Garak." He turned his full attention to her when he saw her look down and run her hands over her swollen abdomen. "Perhaps once we get there, you should stay here in the runabout where it is safer, just in case it's a trap. No one can harm me physically because I'm a Changeling, remember?" She looked up at him and nodded her affirmative, and he nodded, too. "I just...can't risk you or the baby's safety. After all, you asked Nerys and I to be the godparents, if you recall."

She laughed softly and leaned back. She was so soft, energetic and full of life, one of the things Odo loved in her the moment he met her with her father so long ago. "Yeah, and speaking of which, you and her on having a baby?" Her mischievous eyes locked with his. Odo tore away from them and focused on the pathway in space ahead, the stars streaming past them. "Aw, come on, Odo. You don't have to be shy about this."

"I'm not," he grumbled, shaking his head. "I just...I want to make Nerys happy, but I don't know if having a child in a time of war is logical enough. I want us both happy after the losses we had on that day - the Changeling and the O'Briens having their son back - but then that means asking her hand in marriage..." He had always been uneasy about asking Nerys that especially, even more when not long ago, two weeks to be exact, she brought up Mia's suggestion involving this. He looked back at her then. "Which reminds me..."

Mia held up both her hands, giggling and proving guilty. "You got me. I told the major you and her should do that. Tie the knot. Marriage first and then baby second, despite it not being the case with me," she said with another glance down to her roundness. "Even bring your families together, but I know it's not that simple," she added, her face falling. "Your people hate us so much that it makes it easy for us to hate them as well."

Odo had to agree. Truer words had never been spoken, although deep down, he wished he could prove to them that the solids weren't terrible, but they were too proud and stubborn. And then the console beeped, informing them that they had arrived at their destination.

He had met here with Russol before, so he knew the layout of this cave in the mountainous terrain of this desolate moon. Light streamed in mystical silvery blue through cracks so rare visitors - himself included, as well as Gul Russol - would find their way around. Mia stayed behind in the runabout as he asked her, while Odo scouted the cavern, calling for his old friend.

But the response he received after four or five calls wasn't the one he expected. Nor was the face of the owner.

"I'm afraid he couldn't be here."

Odo gritted his teeth when his eyes beheld the familiar outline and lilthing voice of the man he unfortunately encountered on several occasions, and unwillingly worked alongside with during the Dominion-Cardassian occupation of Deep Space 9. "Weyoun."

The Vorta leader of the Dominion bowed his head forward. "Founder." Oh, when was that man ever going to get it through his head that he was NOT a Founder? "It is an honor to stand in your presence once again."

So Nerys had been right all along; it had all been a trick. But he had not expected the deceiver to be _Weyoun_ of all people - but then it made sense now as to WHY he demanded Mia tag along. He wanted to have his lover who was pregnant with his child present for the ride. But Odo did not come all this way for nothing, either. "Where is Gul Russol?"

"I'm afraid the Cardassian Central Command had him...put to death less than a year ago," Weyoun confirmed, almost sadly, but with him, he pretended to sympathize and not care about anyone else. Or did he really? Mia always spoke highly of him, except when it came to her brother and their friends. "I regret having to deceive you, but it was the only way I could think of to get you here...and Mia."

Even in the dim light, Odo could see his eyes flickering, but not with trickery or malice. There was something...odd about Weyoun that did not seem like the one he remembered during the occupation. "Well, I'm here," he said irritably, "and Mia is safe aboard the runabout. So, what do you want?"

His answer took him aback altogether.

"To serve you. I no longer consider myself a member of the Dominion."

Odo wasn't sure if he should believe this or not, but one thing was sure: he would never harm him or Mia. He was still trying to take this in, but managed to ask, "You're... _defecting?_ "

Weyoun stepped further into the light so Odo could see his face more clearly. As always, it was blank as an unwritten PADD, lips tight, but his eyes told more than his face did. "Do with me as you wish," he said softly. "I place my fate entirely..." He fell to his knees then, shocking Odo into disgust at this wasted reverence. "...in your hands."

~o~

"Stand up."

Odo's command was gruff and...disbelieving. He did not mistake the narrowed eyes and tight mimic of a mouth while he rose back up to his feet. Odo didn't buy his story, but how could Weyoun prove he was telling the truth? He came all the way out here after using what had once belonged to the executed Cardassian to get him and the woman carrying his child - who was safely aboard Odo's ship, and he could hardly wait to see her. But right now, he had to try to get Odo to understand him. "You don't believe me."

"I believe Gul Russol is dead," the constable replied, "but _why_ are you defecting from the Dominion, as you say?"

He almost gave way when the god he thought would believe him spoke him down. "Founder, please -" He was cut off by Odo's raised voice.

"I told you before, I'm NOT a Founder!"

Weyoun flinched and stepped back. He'd told his _predecessor_ he wasn't a Founder, not _him_ , but if Odo wanted to not be called that way, so be it. He had to respect his wishes. "As you wish. Odo..." He took a deep breath to calm his thumping heart. "...I'll tell you everything you want to know, but first, we really should get aboard your runabout. The Jem'Hadar are already hunting for me, and if I'm found -" The Founder was quick to notice anything, and she would surely have ordered her own small army to find which transporter was missing and hunt him down for sure.

"You still haven't answered my question." Now it was Odo's turn to take a step his way. " _Why_ did you decide to defect?"

He was going to need more than just simply "I realize my place is with you". Weyoun hesitated at first before answering, "I left Cardassia because my life is in danger, and so is Mia's. From everyone: the Female Changeling, Damar, _everyone._ " _And the child,_ he sent through their link. "I want to protect them both and to offer my life into your hands now."

Odo looked like he was starting to believe him now, but he was still skeptical. After all, he and Weyoun 5 weren't exactly on the best terms despite the latter looking up to him and longing to be favored by him. "Why?" Odo questioned.

"Because this war with the Federation was supposed to be won months ago," Weyoun answered. "Nothing goes according to plan, and when someone has to take the blame, this time it's me. And both the Founder and Damar know about Mia, so that is why I have to do what I should have done a long time ago. It's a mistake I have to right, Odo. Now, we really should be going." He sighed when the constable folded his arms across his chest, still wanting to hear more before he could officially take his "claims" to consideration. Well, that left the information he stated he had in the message to give. One of the hopes of ending this war.

"Think about it, Odo: the information I possess could help the Federation win this war. I'm willing to share it, and all you have to do is ask."

Now he could internally breathe a sigh of relief when Odo's features softened if not all the way. Now he had scored. "We heard rumors that the Dominion established a new ketracel-white facility somewhere in Sector 507."

Weyoun nodded, happy they were getting somewhere. "I can provide you with the exact coordinates, and it is on the Pelosa system." The longer he looked into the shape-shifter's eyes, the more he felt his body go weak at the possibility of freedom from death and the Dominion. He silently prayed Odo would take them out of here now...

"Odo to the _Rio Grande._ Two to beam up." He exhaled in relief and soon found himself off this rock and in clean but sterile and safer surroundings. "Alright, into the cockpit," Odo ordered. "We're getting out of here."

 **So NOW we are into the events of "Treachery, Faith and the Great River", which I've been dying to get to from the beginning of this story. :D And I feel like I'm lacking reviews from so many of you; I could use some more than just from one person. :( I'm not trying to force anyone, but I'd appreciate it as any other author would.**


	27. Treachery, Faith and Death Threats

**I forgot to mention that I really enjoyed Weyoun and Damar dueling in the last chapter. ;D So much delight in seeing our favorite little Vorta unleash his inner fire on the man who killed his predecessor. And now that he and the woman he loves are reunited, things are getting hotter.**

Chapter Twenty-Six

Treachery, Faith and Death Threats

To be aboard Odo's runabout was amazing, for lack of a better word, to say the least. Finally, freedom. He was getting away from the Dominion, but he knew they wouldn't give up that easily, and once a clone was defective - this happened before but never with Weyoun - another would be activated in his or her stead. He wouldn't be foolish to assume they would not do so and welcome him back with opened arms. But he knew for sure he could never go back there - but that didn't stop his love for his gods, particularly this one in front of him.

The doors opened to the cockpit, and Weyoun was still taking in his surroundings when a voice he had heard only in his mind filled his senses with a majestic leap of unbridled happiness. "Weyoun?!"

He stopped where he was, Odo right behind him, when the figure in white and a soft color matching his eyes stood from the seat behind the pilot's chair and remained there for a moment before hurrying over and throwing her arms around his neck. He wasn't sure how to react because his mind was in a buzz because he was holding _her_ in _his_ arms, instead of the arms of his predecessor who worshipped her but also caused her so much suffering. He would NEVER choose anything or anyone else over her again. Despite the weight of her due to the overgrowth in the middle of her body, he was able to spin her around without lifting her off her feet, and leaned his head forward, kissing her for the first time himself and moaning with joy and sorrow at the same time, because he wanted to cry in front of her and Odo now, get it over with and show his emotions now that he was far from Cardassia where his doom awaited him.

"Oh, my Mia," he breathed, breaking the kiss. It had been so beautiful he couldn't put it into words. This was exactly how his predecessor felt every time, but now he could give it to her without any trouble for the future. "I waited so long for this, for you." She whimpered and wrapped one arm around his neck and buried her face into his neck, her other wrapping around his side. He buried his own face into her silky brunette curls, inhaling the exotic floral perfume in them and on her skin - until Odo cleared his throat.

"Well, I hate to break up this family reunion, but we have to get out of here." Weyoun allowed himself to be led to the front and to the chair at the console on his right. "Sit here, where I can keep an eye on you."

He nodded, watching him sit in the pilot's chair. "If it makes you feel better," he answered, still watching him and feeling...overwhelmed. Both at reuniting with Mia behind them both and sitting right beside a _Founder_ who wasn't the one who called him her most loyal and trusted only to treat him like a...slave and a replaceable specimen. Odo would never do that to him, right? Not unless he actually did something against his will. "But you should know, I would NEVER harm a god."

Odo grumbled. "I'm not a god; I'm a security officer. As far as I'm concerned, you're just another prisoner."

He felt his heart sink at those harsh words. "You have no idea how much it hurts me to hear you say that," he said softly. But did he actually _expect_ Odo to like him right away? _Not right away, especially after your...past,_ Mia told him. _It's going to take more convincing than simply worshipping him, same with my father once we get back to the station. Dad knows all about the Vorta cloning process, but you have to prove to him you're not the enemy anymore._

He sighed, though he still kept his attention on Odo. _You're right, beloved. But I could use your help - and Odo's - given you both know him better than I._

"Odo, he's the father of my child, so please be nice to him." He jerked his head back in her direction and almost smiled when she chided the constable. When he did, he saw her hands cradling the roundness; did all pregnant females do that? Or no, and it was simply out of habit for some of them? He smiled at her.

"How...is it?" he asked hesitantly, wondering if Odo minded that they talked about the baby in front of him. He didn't seem to, because Mia answered him.

"We're both getting better, and next month might be the time," she said with a little laugh. From the corner of his mouth, Weyoun saw Odo crack a small smile and chuckle as he got them into warp. "I'm tired of sitting in my quarters just waiting for the day to come. I want to go back to work, too. I know Quark misses me," she added with a wink to the back of Odo's head; in response, he snorted and shook his head. Weyoun sensed that Odo wasn't exactly fond of the Ferengi bartender his predecessor met during the occupation of Deep Space 9. They clashed disagreeably and sometimes unlikely worked together on several occasions, from his last incarnation's memory, but Mia accepted both men in her life - along with everyone around them - despite their differences. Just like she chose him, Weyoun.

He stood up and walked over to Mia, placing his hand on her belly like his predecessor had done such a long while ago. The baby was stirring, and it seemed like she _knew_ her father was trying to make contact so soon. It made him laugh with wonder, but it was also foreign, because this child was conceived by his predecessor and this woman in front of him. Mia's hand covered his hand on her abdomen, reading his thoughts.

"This is _your_ baby now," she whispered. "She's OURS."

Odo's attention shifted to them now, eyes slightly wide, though Weyoun could have sworn he saw the ghost of a smile. "I don't think Captain Sisko will be pleased once he learns of this. He won't be as reasonable as I am. Having a child with his daughter, and what do you know about infants and raising children?"

His memories included Weyoun 5 reading through on "what to expect when you're expecting", even clearing up with Mia on what she endured for all of these months. But it wasn't the same for him actually being beside her because of the frontlines and their oppositions. He had WANTED to help her raise the baby, and now Weyoun 6 would pick up that torch and carry on. He was afraid to die, but he would gladly risk his life for her and not let anything happen to her and their daughter. "More than enough," he answered, turning his head halfway to Odo. "We have been through this together even if we haven't been together in physical being."

"I'm afraid I don't follow." Odo's face was blank and calculating now. Weyoun sighed.

"We're...bonded. In body and spirit. In my culture, it is very common. When Vorta mate either with their own or another, their minds are joined for eternity. It is not simply just marriage and intercourse; it's much more complex than that." He stood up and unfastened his tunic but not taking it off all the way, and shoved the left shoulder down to bare that part of his body - and revealed the eternal marking in his skin to Odo's eyes. He heard the other man suck in a breath and knew what he was thinking. "This wasn't by her hand or mine; it fused into my being overnight of our first night together, so many months ago. Markings are rare, but common on a human. These links are the most powerful without any explanation other than you are one for eternity. That includes exchanging thoughts and secrets -"

Odo looked like he was ready to explode when he assumed they traded sensitive information regarding the war, but Weyoun quickly continued. "Of course, we would never betray each other that way. We have only each other, and we never forced each other to leave one side."

"But now you left the Dominion," Odo stated, slightly baffled. He actually took this revelation about Vorta intimacy and marriage better than Weyoun thought, and he was starting to feel more than simply overwhelmed. He was _honored_.

"Because I realize my place is with her," he answered, pulling his shirt back over his shoulder and returned to his seat. He glanced back over to Mia who was still smiling before she reached over and picked up a PADD for some reading to herself for some time longer before they returned to DS9.

For more hours that passed by, there wasn't much but him and Mia talking back and forth, and he couldn't help but continue to look at Odo while he concentrated on getting them "home", and then his irritation ended it all. "I wish you would stop doing that."

"Doing what?" Weyoun asked, unsure what he did wrong.

"Staring at me."

He blinked. "Was I? I didn't mean to." Of course he didn't, but he couldn't help himself. He was just so...esteemed, and so lucky, if that even counted. He liked to think he made the decision on his own, and look what his actions got him.

"You've done it for the last ten hours," Mia told him, looking up from her PADD. She'd been reading countless stories from Earth that she'd loved since long before moving to the space station with her family. One was a twentieth century Harlequin romance tale called _The Earl's Forbidden Ward_ , set in the 1830s, telling of forbidden passion between a British lord and a young woman under his care, the former who was cool on the outside but heated underneath, and his fiesty ward was the only one to tempt him into something that much sweeter. The imagery conjured up from Mia's readings through their link stirred his loins that he had handled on his own, in his own bed, at night when he was safe from the watchful eyes of Damar and the Founder. But it was also slightly embarrassing with Odo sitting near him.

"I'm sorry, Odo," he said, "but it's such an honor to be sitting here with a g-" He stopped quickly when Odo's icy gaze locked with his face, and he quickly corrected himself. "Security officer." Both looked at Mia when she giggled; she was somehow enjoying herself, namely this mild tension between two men she cared most about. One of them was about to speak to her - Weyoun immediately forgot his own words - when the communication system beeped repeatedly. They were being hailed - and by a _Cardassian transmission_.

"Scramble the transmission frequency so they can't lock onto us," Weyoun insisted when Odo began to work. However, his heart froze with the knowing fear he sensed Mia carried: _They found us._

But despite Odo's best attempts, the viewscreen shimmered to life and showed another face - HIS face. Another Weyoun clone. A terrible tension filled the room when Mia quickly stood and moved to sit beside Weyoun, much to his chagrin. He had hoped she wouldn't do that and put herself and the child at risk. He wanted her to move from the other Weyoun's line of vision, but she had to let her heart get the best of her. Now all three of them were in the picture.

" _Founder,_ " the other Weyoun said smoothly, _"and Mia."_ He smiled slightly, but she pursed her lips in a tight scowl. _"It's an honor to see the both of you again."_

"I wish I could say the same to you," Mia said coolly, putting a protective hand over her belly and standing behind Weyoun's chair. He narrowed his eyes as he locked with the other pair on the screen, matching color and savage hatred for the other.

~o~

Weyoun had been found out, and the Female Changeling had caught on, not that Mia was surprised - but she had NOT expected to see another Weyoun clone in the picture, and she guaranteed this one was worse than the fifth. She gripped the sides of the back of the chair the one she loved sat in, assuming protective stance despite being pregnant, glaring with death at the one on the screen, and he was unaffected, obviously.

 _"Now, Mia, is that any way to greet the father of your child?"_ he asked gently, smiling slightly, which made her snap.

"You're _not_ the father. This one is." She nodded to the Weyoun in front of her, but he didn't look at her when he sent the message, keeping his eyes locked on his newest incarnation, activated when he rebelled. _Please, don't provoke him._ Not that he already wasn't.

 _"That one in front of you is a traitor to the Dominion - and a disgrace to ME and all our people,"_ the other Weyoun hissed, narrowing his eyes, turning them to his right when another voice sounded - and a voice he wasn't pleased to see when he was currently busy.

 _"Oh, darling, talking that way isn't going to get you very far."_ Mia felt her whole body go rigid when another Vorta slipped into sight, clad in a natural-colored, standard attire of _her_ race, the hair short and a dark pile of curls so the graceful, ridged and elongated ears were revealed, her eyes bright light amethyst like Weyoun's...and her face was MIA'S.

This was a Vorta clone of _her_. She felt like she would pass out, and her legs wobbled beneath her, but holding onto Weyoun's seat helped. _How did this happen?_ she managed to ask Weyoun - not the one on the viewscreen - through their bond.

 _I'll answer if the time comes,_ he promised. _It's a long explanation, but I had nothing to do with it. My predecessor did._

The other Weyoun frowned down at her even though she was smiling to the screen, to the stunned faces of Odo and the defective Weyoun - but mostly to Mia, and the twinkle in her eyes was beyond infuriating. Just by making eye contact with her, Mia felt like they were...connected, although not the same as she was with Weyoun. _"Amaya,"_ the Weyoun on the screen chided, _"I thought I told you to not make your appearance known to these people yet."_

 _Amaya..._ that was the name of the Vorta version of herself. She giggled in response to his lecture. _"I'm sorry, but I couldn't help myself. My patience wore thin that I had to see what the Founder's interest was."_

 _"And you have, so if you don't mind, my dear, I would love to get back to what I have come this way for."_

 _"Oh, please, let her stay for the show." Damar,_ Mia sent when she flinched as the Cardassian swine himself boldly made his show. Her Weyoun went rigid, eyes narrowing to snake slits, when he saw with her the murderer of the Weyoun who impregnated her. He smugly smiled at the sight of the trio before it dissolved into a scowl because his gaze settled on the renegade Weyoun, the newest one finally deciding to break off this waste of a first conversation and returned the attention to Odo.

 _"My apologies, Odo. You look surprised to see me, which I have noticed."_

"I'm well aware the Vorta are all clones," he responded, "but I don't think the universe is ready for _two_ Weyouns." He didn't say it aloud, but the universe wasn't ready for two versions of _Mia_ either - one human and one Vorta.

The other Weyoun's response was without remorse or emotion. _"I couldn't agree more."_ Amaya was still by his side and holding his arm with both hands, stroking his sleeve like a precious pet of hers, and her smile was still frozen in place. Mia wondered how the hell anything of herself had been gotten a hold of for the Female Changeling to create a Vorta clone of her - and HOW it was done when the process was different from cloning altogether.

"So..." Odo's voice brought her from her thoughts, his gaze darting back and forth between the Weyoun on the viewscreen and the one beside him. "...which of you is the Weyoun I've had the misfortune of dealing with over the past few months?"

"Actually," the one in the chair spoke, "neither of us."

Mia sighed, thanking him for answering for her, but then the other on the screen continued for him. _"That was Weyoun 5. Our illustrious predecessor was..."_ His pause was slightly dramatic, and even if he was capable of feeling anything, he wouldn't let anyone see. _"...killed a month ago."_

"And I had the honor of replacing him," the Weyoun before her added calmly. _Before I realized the Dominion was what it really was: a quest of revenge and hunger for acquisition. Taking over other lives is not how peace is made; it stems to raise more rebellion._ She smiled, knowing that she finally got through to him in this incarnation.

The new Weyoun sucked in a heavy breath; all clones were delicate on memories of how their predecessors died, and knowing what they had achieved that they would pick up the torch and continue the journey started. _"What a sad day_ that _was for the Dominion. Weyoun 5 was a great man, a true patriot. His death in a...transporter suicide was most unfortunate."_ Then his attention slowly shifted to his side, along with a now silently inquiring Amaya, and glanced Damar's way. _"And highly questionable."_

Weyoun in the chair's gaze matched his opposite's, eyeing Damar with equal severity that Mia was feeling. The man himself saw that she, too, was glowering knowingly at him, but he held it all in. _I know you did it, and you might have fooled everyone else, but not me._ That was what she hoped her eyes told him; in response, he nodded once and exhaled sharply at both her and Weyoun's words - she was talking about the one beside her. _"And still under investigation."_

 _"A very thorough investigation that holds no evidence of foul play,"_ Damar replied without a pause or misstep. Odo seemed to suspect otherwise, but he nodded nevertheless.

"Interesting," he mused. "So, if you're Weyoun 6..." He nodded in the direction beside him before returning to the one in the screen. "...you must be seven." So from now on, Mia was calling the one beside her and Odo Weyoun 6, and the other would be Weyoun 7, now that the constable pieced it together himself.

Damar rolled his eyes, and his muttered words were clear to her senses. _"Clones. Keeping track of them is a full-time job."_

"And why were you activated if _he's_ still alive?" Odo persisted with his interrogation, and now Mia's anxieties were returning. Weyoun 7's face split into a half smile briefly which dissolved into an impassive expression, getting to the real reason he was contacting them, having tracked his renegade predecessor down. She reached down and took Weyoun 6's hand into hers, not wanting to let go when the other spoke.

 _"Normally, I wouldn't be, but when a clone is found to be defective -"_

Weyoun 6 erupted, his hold on her hand tightening with his words. "I am NOT defective!" he retorted.

 _"Of course you are,_ " Weyoun 7 snarled, lips pulling back. _"What other explanation is there resulting in your behavior leaving your post, defecting to the_ enemy _and rejoining your whore right there?"_

Her bubble burst at being called a whore like she had while Gul Dukat had her beside him during the occupation of her home. And the insult enraged her lover, too, now that she could call him so despite being a new incarnation of the one she joined bodies and made a child with. "How DARE you call Mia a whore," he raged, bringing his other hand up to place over her belly as his gesture of protection. "And you also dare to call _Odo_ your enemy?!"

 _"Because Mia IS a concubine, carrying the child of our respected predecessor,"_ Weyoun 7 answered suavely, _"but Odo?"_ His eyes widened with mock-shock, though his face remained stoned as it was. _"Absolutely not, because he's a god I share your exaltation of. I was referring to the Federation, as you're well aware."_

 _"Oh, boys."_ Amaya, the new face, had not spoken and chose to do so now. Because she was new to meeting the trio, perhaps new to the war efforts period, she couldn't speak up much unless she knew she had to. _"Please, don't fight. We don't want anymore squabbles now, do we?"_ she purred, leaning up to lick Weyoun 7's ear boldly in front of their enemies - and Damar, who smirked and shook his head, looking down at the floor - but Weyoun 7 was turned on by the mildly erotic gesture, until he regained control of his urges and rounded on her.

 _"Amaya, perhaps it's wise you leave for the moment. I will call you on when I need you."_ She looked at him reproachfully and then at Damar who snickered - Weyoun 7 looked like he wanted to throw him out with her, too - but avoided looking at Mia and her men altogether and left the room. Or did she simply move off to the side so none of them would have to deal with her for the moment?

"You two can start by explaining how you got any DNA sample of me for her," Mia said, gritting her teeth and automatically assuming it had to do with Weyoun 5 during the occupation...and that one disagreement they had before he mind-sedated her when he kissed her despite her not wanting it.

She looked down at Weyoun 6 as he sucked in an unsteady breath. "Weyoun 5...he took a blood sample from you when you weren't aware of it, at the order of the Founder herself. She knew of your relationship, like Damar..." His hostile eyes shifted to the side and rested on the Cardassian when he spoke. "...and respected it as much as she loathed to because you made it clear your hatred of her, but she knew that you couldn't be persuaded to join the Dominion." He bowed his head in shame, but it wasn't his fault. She touched him through the link they shared. And it brought forth the anger she had felt towards that Weyoun who subdued her into stupor that one time. Sneaky bastard. The betrayal couldn't be any greater than that.

But did he KNOW what the Founder intended to use of her blood sample?

And Weyoun 7 added more oil to the fire in her blood. _"The Founder deemed it fit that he would have a mate, though it took more time to bring Amaya to being than merely cloning an already living being. And the fact of Mia Sisko's impressive prowess and mental strength proved useful enough that Amaya could use it, too; it had passed onto Weyoun 5's line, now_ mine," he added smugly, then his mouth curled at the sides when he looked at Weyoun 6 once more. _"And yours, unfortunately."_

Damar interrupted him. _"Enough bickering. Order him to trigger his implant."_

Weyoun 7 scoffed. _"I was getting to that."_

Mia felt like her heart had stopped in its tracks. _Implant...oh, God, Weyoun,_ she moaned through their bond, freezing like ice once more. Odo's eyes were the same when they turned to face him. "What...implant?" he asked slowly.

Weyoun 6's answer was devoid of emotion. "Like all Vorta, I have a termination implant in my brain stem. In case of defection or capture, I am free to take my own life."

 _No, no NO! You will NOT DO THAT!_ Mia screamed through the link. _I lost you before and I will NOT lose you again!_ He looked up at her, his eyes warning her to keep calm, but she would _not_ keep calm at this time...! She jerked her head back to the viewscreen when Weyoun 7 had the nerve to order him to activate his implant in order to prove his loyalty to the Founders. Of course, Weyoun 6 refused.

"The only _Founder_ ," he replied strongly, "I'm loyal to is Odo, and he wants me alive."

 _"I told you it was a waste of time, trying to reason with him,"_ Damar complained, but Weyoun 7 kept his furious gaze on his predecessor and his "whore", and the outcast Founder himself. _"You're a dead man, renegade, whether you activate the implant or not. That ship will NEVER make it back to Deep Space 9. And it will give me great joy to see the girl and that little one go with the ship."_ His face twisted into a sadistic smile when he "hinted" that both Mia and the baby would die, as feared by all of them. _"I never thought a child was involved in this, but now it makes it better."_

Odo's posture became rigid enough that he looked like he would dissolve into his natural state any second, but Weyoun's whole body quivered beyond rage that Damar threatened both the lives of Mia and their child, now that he discovered an infant had been conceived between her and the last Weyoun he killed himself. And Weyoun 7 thought he could smoothly handle this by allowing a smile to show as he tried to "reason".

 _"Damar, you will NOT harm a mother and her child; I won't allow it,"_ he hissed before said smile appeared. _"And Founder, Miss Sisko, there is really no need for either of you to be involved in this...petty dispute. If you would just hold your position until one of our ships can reach you..."_

Oh, the hell she would surrender to that sadistic clone and the equally cold-blooded lizard. "I would sooner die than settle this with either of you and your drug-addicted Jem'Hadar," she spat at Weyoun 7, making his smile fade and his scowl return. Odo objected with her.

"I have _no_ intention of releasing my prisoner to you."

He'd made it clear that he saw Weyoun 6 as simply a prisoner to him, but he was also well aware of his feelings for Mia, so that bulb of hope flickered a little at the thought that he was protecting Weyoun for her sake and their baby. Weyoun thought so with her, feeling the same emotions as she was, too. But the other Weyoun wasn't willing to let it slide. _"If you don't,"_ he said coldly, _"then I can't be responsible for the consequences."_

Weyoun 6 exploded now, refusing to allow his wicked successor to bring any bodily harm to both Odo and his pregnant lover. "An empty threat! You wouldn't dare harm a Founder and a young mother. You would have to come and face me yourself in order to do that."

 _"Maybe he won't act out physically, but_ I _will,"_ Damar promised. _"Think about it, shape-shifter and girl; one of our attack ships is on the way."_

 **So Weyoun's reasons for defecting involves his love for a woman, and it's been such a delight to do. :) If I said that already, then I'm glad I did it again.**

 **Amaya - the name of Mia's Vorta counterpart which Windblazer Prime and I have had planned since the beginning - is also a Japanese name meaning "night rain". We're excited to show what her role is much later on. ;D**

 **"The Earl's Forbidden Ward" by Bronwyn Scott is one of my favorite Harlequin romance novels of all time.**


	28. Say a Prayer

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Say a Prayer

Odo stared at the blank viewscreen for a while longer before lowering his eyes to the console, feeling more than enough turmoil in his regret bringing a pregnant Mia here to begin with. But it was too late to turn back now. She was his responsibility; she had always been every time she would bring herself along in a mission in the past, and Sisko would place her in Odo's "care". It annoyed him at times, but Mia was the closest thing of a niece he had, and if anything happened to her, he would never forgive himself.

Now the Dominion was coming for them. Weyoun 7 would not waste his words in sending out Jem'Hadar vessels after his runabout. And Damar would follow through on making sure they never made it back alive.

Weyoun 6 was watching him intensely, but Odo couldn't look at him. He had made the decision to come to him and put both him and Mia in danger, but he couldn't hate him fully for it. There had to be more to his reason for defecting, and Odo wanted to know now. He looked up when Mia walked away from Weyoun's chair and returned to her seat. Weyoun watched her, too, before speaking at last. "Forgive me, the both of you." His voice was low and dull, filled with regret. "I should have told you both more about why I defected."

Odo nodded. "Well, it's not too late to start." Somehow, he doubted it because those ships were still on the way.

The Vorta exhaled, glancing over to Mia once more; his eyes darted back and forth between her and Odo as he explained. "It's...quite simple. I remembered everything the moment I was activated, even what happened to the last Weyoun." He stopped right there, eyes closing tightly as though trying to suppress the unwelcome memories. "But the 'incident' is too hideous to repeat aloud."

"I'll do it." Both men turned to Mia, but her voice was strangled as though having a sore throat. Her lower lip quivered that she had to chew it to make it stop. "I saw everything Damar did to him, even felt his pain. He...put a knife to the marking he shared with me and simply pierced the skin, let it bleed, and then brought it down south to...c-c-castr-" Her eyes also squeeze tight, but to prevent tears from falling. She didn't need to finish, because Odo knew what she was trying to say, and could see why Weyoun was hesitant about explaining himself. Now he could feel sympathy because the former Dominion ambassador had been through something he should never have gone through - and for Mia to be pregnant and endure the nightmare of seeing and feeling it with him.

And it made her ill to discuss it right now. "Mia, don't let it harm you and the baby," Odo begged, not wanting her to break down here in space, not when those damned attack ships were coming after them. "Go on," he told Weyoun.

"His death and her suffering of it wasn't all I recalled. It was the unconditional and powerful love they shared which I had the honor of capturing not only for them, but for myself, because after everything that my predecessor caused her during the occupation of Deep Space 9 and choosing the Dominion over her despite his promises to her that they would make it through someday, I felt it was wrong to be away from such a beautiful young woman with a life of excitement and love, bearing his child and grateful to have him to worship her. He ordered her friends and loved ones imprisoned and almost executed, followed the shadow of the Female Changeling, and continued to faithfully serve the Dominion which Mia opposed and wanted him to sacrifice for her, for the sake of her and their child - and innocent lives at stake."

He paused there, inhaling and exhaling because he was talking so much. "To put it frankly, the moment I was activated and felt the unbreakable bond between this woman that I love - not because she was my predecessor's, but because I feel more happy than I ever recall - I felt this war was _wrong._ Please don't misunderstand me," he added with a slight raise of his hand. "I still worship the Founders, but I believe their _obsession_ -" He hissed disgustedly around the word, making Odo want to do the same. "- with conquering the Alpha Quadrant is misguided. It's time they learned to live in PEACE with the solids."

The whole time he was listening, Odo realized how much his words matched his own beliefs about this war...and how true they were. He was a defender of justice, so why wouldn't he? And while he had at first distrusted this particular Weyoun, now he began to see that he had truly _changed_ from the one he remembered. But the one thing that hadn't changed the most was his devotion for Mia.

"I know it's not my place to question the Founders..." He still had that unbroken loyalty created in his genetic makeup, so sometimes Odo wondered if he was worshipped by the man in front of him simply because he was a Changeling. "Maybe Weyoun 7 was correct," he mused. "I _am_ defective."

Mia burst forth from her seat, wincing at her gained weight, but she managed to get over to him. "Weyoun, don't ever call yourself that," she panted, kneeling down beside him. "Defective is an ugly word for abnormal and at fault. You're nothing like that; you came to your senses when I did everything I could to get the last Weyoun to be with me, but he remained with the Founders out of fear of what you call damaged and imperfect."

She spoke with passion, devotion and more loyalty than Odo had ever seen her give. She was unbroken that way with him, her father, Nerys and the rest of the crew - but with Weyoun, it was the man she loved whom she deserved to keep her on her toes. The Weyoun she met had somehow ignited a desire in her that she'd never felt before, filling her somehow incomplete life, and then he made her happy before everything became a living hell for them, preventing them from completing the circle they created for each other. Odo remembered how the Female Changeling tried to tear him from Nerys, knowing the exact feeling and how devastated he was when she lashed out at him and broke his heart as he'd done so to her. Mia and Weyoun had done the same to each other during the occupation...but now this new Weyoun had become the man she wanted him to be.

He wanted to do the right thing and end this war which caused the deaths of millions, started by Odo's own people. His eyes opened to the real picture in front of him, and it was stemmed from his love for the woman carrying his child.

"She's right," Odo finally spoke, getting their attention. "On the contrary, what you're saying about the war, about the Founders...makes perfect sense."

Mia's sweet face looked like it was going to crack from more tears; her innocence kept in place despite attempts to break it never failed to melt him on the inside - and Weyoun's was no different, except he never allowed a tear to fall. The way he looked at Odo could easily do the same effect the girl gave him, but Odo tried his hardest to keep it together as much as he wanted to shrink under those lavender eyes which mastered softening a frigid heart. But Odo possessed no heart even though he could feel emotions other beings thought he wasn't capable of.

"Odo," Weyoun breathed, his voice like a child looking up to their role model who had helped them this far, "I want to thank you for the way you stood up for us." He held Mia's hands in both of his, the simple gesture as well as his early placing of the hand over the baby growth enough to tell Odo of how their love survived the Dominion taking over DS9 and almost taking everything she loved away - and Damar himself almost taking him from HER. Odo wanted to tell him he was welcome, but instead he found himself slightly straying from it, making his face fall.

"Well, don't let it go to your head. I would do the same to every prisoner." He was referring to Weyoun himself.

How could he smile at such a mild offense? Was it only to please him because he felt he deserved to be treated so lowly? Odo might never know. "Of course, you would," Weyoun said. "You're a god."

He grumbled and rolled his eyes, turning away from the couple so he could focus on them getting back home safe. If he heard that one more time...

~o~

On Cardassia Prime, Weyoun 7 seethed with righteous anger. To think that a WEYOUN could be capable of such _treachery!_ His predecessor was an utter failure to their people that he would pay for it. He would _not_ let him get away with this; the Founder herself made it clear that she wanted his death made an example, not that it wasn't anything new.

Oh, he would take great pleasure seeing his predecessor die - and to see Mia Sisko's face as she watched it happen. Their child did not matter to him, either. She could handle it alone as she dealt with her pregnancy alone thus far. That is, if plans changed and she was allowed to live after all.

He could hear the clinking of glass behind him; Damar was pouring himself more kanar. "I knew there was something wrong about him the moment we met," he said. "He...lacked your appetite for cruelty, faced me off in the gym and overpowered me; the latter hadn't changed, but it sure was stronger. I keep telling myself that he's on the softer edge because of the Sisko girl, most of all."

"He's a _disgrace,_ " Weyoun 7 spat in agreement, back facing the Cardassian, "to me and all Vorta."

Amaya - his new mate given to him as a gift from the Founder - returned to his side from having sat away from line of vision, placing her hand on his arm as her gesture of affection, but her tenderness wouldn't shake him off vengeful thoughts on Weyoun 6 and Mia, the latter whose DNA created this wondrous creature beside him. Captain Sisko's daughter was not deemed a suitable ally for the Dominion just because she linked with the great Weyoun 5, and the Female Changeling herself made a wise decision in making another Vorta who bore Mia's characteristics and looks, if she was now like any Vorta: cunning, deceitful, and graceful...and powerful despite her dainty structure. Ever since Weyoun 6 abandoned the Dominion and Cardassia and the seventh activated, the unusual but striking combat skills became an important factor for the Weyoun line and now the new Amaya, whose line was now considered suitable for the cloning process. She was the breakthrough in Borath's research, too.

"Oh, Weyoun, you can't possibly blame him for his behavior," she said soothingly. "Cloning is, as you said, a more delicate process, after all." Despite being only a few days old, she caught on pretty quick, and Weyoun was impressed. Looking down at her, he managed a small smile.

"You're absolutely right," he agreed. "Every once in awhile, a clone IS found to be defective. Though..." He frowned half to himself and half to her. "...it has never once happened to a Weyoun before. But it _does_ happen." The smile returned when he considered the possibility of this "little" mistake being fixed and never happening again. His treachery would be an example made, indeed. And speaking of treachery, he turned his attention with Amaya to Damar behind them.

"Speaking of which, Damar...there is _still_ the little matter of the death of Weyoun 5."

Damar scoffed. "You really believe _I_ had something to do with _that?_ "

"You were supposed to be on that transporter with him," Weyoun accused, narrowing his eyes. "And the details were very clear in the autopsy: cut flesh behind the left shoulder, genital region severed and massive blood loss, the last of which was the possible cause of death. It begs the question as to why a remarkable, memorable man like Weyoun 5 would do such a thing to himself." In truth, he remembered every detail besides reading the report; it was in his memory chip clear as a crystal, even clearer than his weak eyes could outline a painting. Damar had everything to do with it, but no evidence was found on him.

And he was still denying it, hiding it from everyone but the successor - and his smile gave it all away. "I got called away to an urgent meeting with Central Command afterwards. I was always...lucky."

Weyoun snorted. "How convenient. I don't recall you telling anyone else that." He scrunched his nose at the glass of kanar handed to him, as a pathetic attempt to change the subject. "I'm afraid our problems won't be washed away quite that easily." He smirked when Amaya made her move in deftly slapping the glass away, upwards so the liquid splashed into Damar's smug face, wiping that arrogant smirk off.

Damar sputtered, wiping his face and setting the glass down. "You Vorta vixen, you -!" He looked like he wanted to strike Amaya down, but she giggled and leaned into Weyoun. He chuckled himself and wrapped an arm around her waist, grinning with her.

"The best comeuppance at the present I would have thought of myself," he replied. "And it made me feel a little better at the present." But it didn't erase the threat his predecessor still posed, because for all he knew, Weyoun 6 could reveal sensitive information to the Federation regarding the location of ketracel-white facilities - notably the one on Pelosa. And nothing, not even kanar, would soothe his fraying nerves which Damar saw through easily.

"I don't know what you're so concerned about, Weyoun," he said, pouring another glass and pretending nothing happened, "but Odo and Mia Sisko can't possibly outrun an attack ship."

Perhaps not, but along the way back to Deep Space 9, Weyoun 6 could reveal what he possessed. And Odo had made it clear he wouldn't surrender that easily, either. "But what if he refuses to hand over his prisoner?" he reminded Damar, who answered blatantly much to the shock of both him and Amaya.

"Then he'll die. Both him and the girl as well as the brat she carries from your predecessor."

He felt like his whole body had exploded on an overload; he DARED to plan the deaths of Odo and Mia against his wishes; he might have no problem offing the woman, but ODO?! "I agree to Captain Sisko's daughter, but Odo will _not_. Despite what you promised him, you can't kill a Founder. I _forbid_ it."

"Unless we stop them," Damar argued, taking a step forward and shoving Amaya aside, "Odo and Sisko are going to take your predecessor back to the Federation where he will undoubtedly reveal all he knows - all _you_ know," he added with a finger lifted to his face, making Weyoun sneer, "about our strategic operations. You know what that means, don't you?"

Amaya's thoughts matched his; they were linked ever since the first night the Founder introduced them and suggested they bond right away. She wanted to have Amaya mated with Weyoun the moment she was created, and the moment Weyoun laid his eyes on her, he saw her as a potential partner. _This means we will lose, dear Weyoun. Means everything that you and the Founder worked so hard to achieve as well as everything I'll come to love myself will fall to ruin._ He nodded somberly and looked ahead, avoiding Damar altogether.

"It means...we could lose the war," he whispered.

"That's right. So, I will NOT allow that to happen, because Cardassia has suffered too much, risked too much..." Weyoun rolled his eyes at his blind love for his home planet in favor of greater achievement. "...and let all of our plans, all of our dreams for the future end in defeat, just to spare the life of _one_ shape-shifter."

Amaya laughed and reached to place her hand on Damar's shoulder; Weyoun sensed this without turning around. "Believe it or not, dear Legate, that the Jem'Hadar won't fire even if they were ordered once they knew who they were firing at," she said. Then her smile broadened to the point of baring teeth as a devious addition came to existence, and she lowered her voice as she leaned in to him. "Unless they don't need to know _he's_ on board. They could know that Amelia Sisko alone took in Weyoun 6, sans mentioning Odo. You understand where I'm going, Weyoun?" she asked him.

Her plan overall meant simply destroying the runabout, taking the lives of Odo, the defective Weyoun, and his pregnant lover who was the rival Federation captain's daughter with it. Perfect, but the life of a Founder still counted on it! Weyoun was about to object when it dawned on him how Odo defended the rogue Vorta clone and refused to return to his people often in the past. "I suppose it could work," he said finally, "but if the Founders ever found out that WE were ever responsible for Odo's death..."

"Who's going to tell them?" Amaya asked slyly, batting her lashes.

It could always be _her_ if not himself or Damar. Amaya was crafty enough to snitch when she deemed fit, but he detected no intents on doing so this time. And besides... "Odo doesn't even consider himself a Founder, does he?" Of course not; he answered that himself already.

Damar smiled. "Then we agree. Now, won't you two lovebirds be introduced to kanar now?" Damned bastard never learned anything, did he? Weyoun narrowed his eyes and took Amaya's arm and led her away from him.

~o~

No further threats detected thus far, but Odo would not let his guard down and assume they were safe. But it had been an hour since Damar and Weyoun 7 contacted them and warned them of the Jem'Hadar coming for their refusal to surrender. The runabout was armed well, but how would they stand a chance against much more heavily armed Jem'Hadar fighters - and with a pregnant woman on board?

Mia had fallen asleep in her seat behind him, lowering the back down so she was almost flat and comfortable, sweet and innocent as if nothing else mattered. Odo smiled at her before turning to look at Weyoun beside him; the Vorta had passed out, too, in his chair. The trip had exhausted them both, apparently. He just hoped they would surpass Damar's warning and ultimately get home safe and sound -

A noise beside him brought his attention back to Weyoun. His face was relaxed in sleep, until his eyelids squeezed and showed creases, uttering wordless syllables, and he could have sworn he heard his name: "Odo..."

"Weyoun." He found it in him to reach over and nudge the Vorta awake, almost flinching that he even touched him, even if it wasn't direct skin contact. At the touch, Weyoun's eyes snapped open, and he looked around frantically, panting and trying to catch his breath. He'd been having a nightmare, no doubt. Then his attention landed on Odo right away, and he relaxed, exhaling softly in relief. "What is it?" Odo asked, now feeling concerned for the former diplomat.

Weyoun inhaled again through his nose, keeping his mouth closed. "I think I was...dreaming."

"Sounded more like a nightmare."

Weyoun's face split into an amused smile as though never thinking of that word before. He nodded briefly. "I was on...Earth, at Starfleet Headquarters. I was supposed to report for my debriefing, but I...couldn't find the right office. Then I started calling your name, but you didn't answer." His body shifted upwards and went stiff at once. "And then, I started being chased by some Jem'Hadar - or were they Klingons?" He stopped there, wearing an expression that clearly spoke of how ridiculous it was just explaining it, laughing softly before looking back up at Odo. "Silly, isn't it?"

"Not at all." He was tempted to laugh at the imagery produced, but he could see Weyoun was serious, and so he was, as well. "It isn't easy to turn your back on your own people. Believe me, I know." Indeed he knew. But while his people waited for him to come back to them, they waited for this one's demise. It made him want to keep Weyoun safe all the more, and he would honor it no matter how much the Vorta's adoration of him ruffled his feathers.

"Odo, do you think Starfleet would allow you to...conduct my debriefing? It would make it that much easier."

Odo pondered this, thinking that Starfleet would allow him to speak on Weyoun's behalf to not have him tried and executed, or imprisoned at least, given he would be helping them from now on, but before he could respond, there was a light metallic clutter to the floor as Weyoun shifted his position. His lavender eyes followed Odo's light blue ones where the wink of a _ring_ rested. Weyoun reached down to pick it up since it was the nearest to him. Odo leaned in to see what it was, and when he did, he was amazed by the cluster of vivid, violet-blue stones he recognized as tanzanite - the rarest and most beautiful to outshine a diamond. It was Mia's favorite gemstone.

Odo blinked when the definition of the ring came to mind. "She will say yes, but her father's blessing you will need." He looked over to Mia when she stirred in her sleep but didn't wake. She must really be that tired. "She is beautiful, isn't she?" Of course she was, and Weyoun knew it, too.

"Of course, Odo. But it's more than just her beauty that makes me the happiest being in the galaxy. She is the light of my entire universe without the proper words, and even though it came from my predecessor, I..." He hesitated with his next words, longing to get them out but fearing they would come out wrong. "...want her to be my mate for life."

The alarm beeped then, destroying the talk of happiness and marriage, and waking Mia up at once. "What is it?" she asked groggily, sitting up.

"Trouble," Odo said simply. The Jem'Hadar were here.

The whole ship was wracked with impact; the rear had been shot, and only less than ten feet from behind them. He opened the screen to see that it was only one attack ship, but they were still no match unless there was a plan to come up with quick. Mia shrieked and almost fell out of her chair but managed to grab the arms for support. "I can't believe they're firing on us!" Weyoun exclaimed, quickly shoving the ring back into his pocket, wherever it had been before.

"Believe me, they are!" Odo shouted over another blast.

"But the Jem'Hadar would _never_ harm a Founder!"

He grumbled. "Maybe they got it to their heads that I am _not_ a Founder." If they did, then THAT was a relief, but it also meant they would kill him if they wanted to, because he was allied with the enemy.

Mia came between the men, hands on either side of her and grabbing the backs of their chairs. "Or maybe they don't know _who_ they're firing," she added, and now it made that much more sense. Damar and Weyoun 7 had to have ordered them to fire without telling them WHO was aboard the small ship their fighter chased after. "We gotta let them know you're on board."

Odo pressed the transmissions key, but no such luck. "They're jamming all the frequencies. I can't get through." This meant they were doomed after all, no matter how often they tried to come up with an escape plan.

Weyoun pursed his lips with fury, eyes blazing like purple fire - irony for the smoke coming up around them from the constant phaser shots. "They've been ordered not to communicate. And Damar said he was determined to not let us get back to Deep Space 9."

There was another shot, and Mia was off her feet, falling backwards but not landing on her stomach. He wished she had remained sitting down so she was safe and strapped down, but it was too late for that. Then Weyoun jumped out of his and moved beside Odo's. "See if you can get above and behind them."

Odo was baffled. He would be able to do that, but what would come of this? "Why?"

"I'll explain later; just do it."

Well, it was like being back on the job at the station. No questions, just obey your orders. Odo pulled the runabout above to dodge the next shot and now controlled it so it was behind the enemy vessel. "Now, lock phasers on their dorsal field junction," Weyoun ordered. "Against twin phaser blast, their shields are the weakest there."

Odo nodded and carried out the order, and in an instant, the vivid orange rays of phaser fire struck out at the rear shields ahead, and the Jem'Hadar ship exploded into metal debris and fire in space. Odo brought the runabout overhead to avoid the wreckage so they would get away, but he had the feeling more would come. Weyoun 7 and Damar would find out eventually about this mess. But right now, that did not matter, because Weyoun 6 had just saved both his life and Mia's, and his own.

"Oh, Weyoun!" Mia pulled herself onto her feet and ran over to hug him from behind, but Weyoun's return of the gesture was by simply placing his hand on her arm in a feeble embrace and with a blank look on his face. She didn't seem to notice at first, letting her lover go only to wrap her arms around Odo's shoulders from behind. He laughed with her in spite of the opposite that Weyoun was experiencing, whatever it was. "He saved us, Odo! He was so brave; weren't you, darling?"

He had slumped into his chair once more, staring grimly at the controls before him, his voice barely audible and filled with the desire for penance. "And murdered loyal servants of the Dominion." He sighed and bowed his head as if in prayer for forgiveness, his words matching.

"May the Founders forgive me."


	29. Of Gods and Servants

**This episode was one of my official favorites, even when it has Weyoun. Defective Weyoun 6 is beloved by the fans and myself as well as Windblazer Prime and Irishchick1982. He is considered a tragic figure fanbase-wise and in the entire Trek-verse. He would have truly become a good man if he made it back alive with Odo; him dying in Odo's arms is one of the most poignant scenes ever. And Jeff Combs did say this was one of his favorite episodes because he got to play two different Weyouns; I say this is my favorite because of everything I just explained about this beloved character. :')**

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Of Gods and Servants

He felt like he had fallen into a pit. A bottomless pit, forever descending into oblivion without hopes of escaping. Always falling, that clench around his heart and stomach getting worse until it engulfed every breath in his body. Because it was punishment.

He had committed a crime against the Dominion by executing loyal servants. Servants sent out to kill him, Odo, and Mia. And for that, he did not deserve the forgiveness and love of his gods, no matter how much he prayed for it.

"May the Founders forgive me." He had it in him to repeat the words again, and he could feel Odo and Mia's eyes on him, knowing what the latter was thinking. She was tired of all of this talk about the Founders being gods; she and Weyoun 5 always argued about this, and she was willing to repeat it now because she knew she was right, and wouldn't stop until it got through to his head.

"Has it ever occurred to you," Odo said, "that the reason you believe the Founders are gods...is because that's what they _want_ you to believe? That they _built_ it into your genetic code?"

Weyoun was surprised he even asked, when he was one of them if not a part of the Dominion. "Of course they did," he answered. "That's what gods do. After all, why be a god if there is no one there to worship you?"

"Or these beings are just playing gods and don't measure the consequences. They are physical as we are if not able to remain one form as us."

And there it was. From none other than the woman herself.

Odo turned his gaze upwards when she spoke. "There you go," he told Weyoun. "She has a direct point. My people are not gods by any means, because I keep telling you so of myself."

"That's right, and exactly what I kept telling your stubborn predecessor," Mia said, her eyes - one brown and the other blue - turning towards Weyoun now. "I refuse to speak ill of the dead, because I loved him and waited patiently long enough for him to come to his senses and to see how precious life was, but he let his own be taken even if neither of us saw it coming from Damar. Weyoun died serving a bunch of ruthless murderers and killed by one. I won't let them take _you_ from me this time."

~o~

Vorta sexual relations varied from fierce and rough to soft and loving, and each partner took turns as equals. This was the case with Weyoun 7 and Amaya, beginning that first night she'd been presented to him by the Female Changeling. He thanked the Founder for the "gift" before taking her to his quarters; they were once Weyoun 6's, and now his. He had to say, the first time he set foot in these rooms after awakening in Borath's lab, he fancied his leprous predecessor's collection of blade work fascinating, and his hobby of working out when the Founder wasn't around, despite her awareness. But that was another story altogether.

The moment he laid his eyes on Amaya, she was the exact image of Mia Sisko even though he never met the girl before, seen her only through Weyoun 5 and 6's memories. With the exception of the rich mass of hair, graceful ears and fluid-colored eyes that his people had - Borath and his fellow scientists did a remarkable job taking their time with her more than with simply cloning one of their own. This was human DNA combined with Vorta, and more details that much complex, but Weyoun was no scientist. He wanted to know the secret, however, but the Founder would book no question, only that he had his new mate. She never intended for the real Mia to be with his predecessor all along, so she created a Vorta version in her stead. An excellent plan, indeed.

 _"So, you're the great Weyoun, ambassador to the almighty Dominion."_ He'd chuckled at her quick intelligence.

 _"Indeed. And you are...?"_

The female had inclined her head forward, her lips curling into a sultry smile that made him feel light to the senses. _"I am Amaya, Ambassador. Has the Founder not given my name to you?"_

She was bold, he would give her that. Weyoun had chuckled again and shook his head, leading her into his quarters at once. _"Of course, Amaya. But I merely wanted to hear it from your own lips when I met whom the Founder was giving to me after a long wait."_

She'd chuckled then, bringing a delicate hand up, fingers caressing his chin and lower lip, the sensations cool but pleasant and bringing forth a reaction he never felt before, but his two predecessors experienced with one certain woman this one stemmed from. The four before all three of them never experienced such desires except for a single night or a few, all casual and not meaning anything. _"Then you'll find the wait was worth it,"_ Amaya said softly, blinking once. Her smile faded into a soft expression of mere curiosity matching his own. _"Are you...up for a first night of mating? If this is too soon, but the Founder insists we bond immediately..."_

If that was the will of the Founder, he would gladly get right to it. Weyoun smiled down at her and leaned down, pressing his mouth innocently against hers and cutting her off. He wasn't sure if he could call it love at first sight, because this was arranged and not of his own will - but the will of the Female Changeling, and he would do this for both her and this new face and addition to their ranks. He'd murmured and purred against her mouth, pleased she returned it and deepened it for the both of them. Her hand left his cheek and glided up to stroke his ear, deliberately deepening the hum his body revved, but no more than the lower half of his body which longed to have another join with it. He'd broken the kiss to breathlessly suggest that they take this in his bed.

They'd went at it like hungry animals craving flesh and blood, removing each other's clothing without tearing them off, admiring skin and sensitivity with great speed enough to imprint in memory, caressing and holding on until they couldn't take it anymore, and Weyoun took charge first, being on the brink of madness himself while in this very position he had her in. She'd laid flat on her stomach, skin shining with pearly sweat as his was, the sight of her arched back and rear, legs spread for greater access, irresistible. _"Are you ready?"_ he'd asked as he leaned over and shifted his hips after grasping both her thighs and dragging her down the bed with him; he'd been standing on both feet for the whole time even when she nodded her affirmative and cried out with beastly lust when he entered her from behind and began to vary his thrusting from circular to straight to back and forth. The experience was memorable in the end.

And now they were sneaking away from Damar for the time being until the news came that the _Rio Grande_ was destroyed; he would relish the victory of eliminating his treacherous predecessor and his Federation harlot - and Odo, unfortunately - but the Founder constantly asked if they located Weyoun 6. He wasn't sure how much longer he could hold it off before she asked once more, and what if she found out he had been stalling? That meant severe punishment for him as well as Amaya, given her involvement.

He was on his bent legs, squatting on the bed as Amaya sat in his lap with her legs wrapped around and taking equal control this time. He could call this a form of early celebration for them both when their predecessors - or should he say, client for her - would be gone soon enough, and the flexible strain of their legs wound added more balance and ultimately a fall back onto the bed once their peaks were reached. Once it was over, Weyoun fell onto his back to let his legs stretch out and regain their circulation, panting as his heart beat rapidly, skin pouring with moisture, and Amaya on top of him though keeping her legs around his hips.

"Sorry to disturb you both."

He roared and pushed Amaya aside, sitting up and glaring furiously at the doorway. "Damn it, Damar, have you no respect?!" But the Cardassian chuckled and shook his head, kanar glass in hand again obviously.

"Sorry," he said again, taking another swig, "but we have bad news regarding the Jem'Hadar ship. Get dressed and join me right now."

"Will you need me, dear?" Amaya asked as she joined him in getting dressed again once Damar was gone. Weyoun scoffed, already knowing what the "bad news" was before he joined the Cardassian Legate.

"Not at the present." He left without another word. The viewscreen regarded the severe damage to the single ship they enlisted for this "simple" mission. He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes. Odo and Miss Sisko couldn't have figured out how to outmatch the Jem'Hadar on their own.

"I don't understand this." Damar shook his head. "How could _one_ runabout destroy a Jem'Hadar fighter?"

Well, only one extra passenger aboard that ship knew about the vulnerabilities of Dominion cavalry. "Isn't it obvious?" Weyoun asked calmly. "My predecessor must have helped Odo get past the ship's defenses. We must stop them now by sending more ships. Send a _whole battalion_ if necessary and have them fire on sight." He would finish this all in one day if that was the last thing he ever did...

"Fire at whom?"

The Founder and her two Jem'Hadar had appeared in the doorway, face expressionless and hard, eyes cold as ice as she stepped inside. Weyoun hadn't heard her come in, but then again, she was known to make her appearances without notifying she was present. "Founder, you honor us with your presence. How may I serve you?" Weyoun asked, doing his best to keep calm.

"By answering my question," she said simply. "Would that be...Weyoun 6 and Amelia Sisko by any chance?"

Something snapped inside him when he looked past her and saw none other than Amaya slip past the Jem'Hadar and join the Founder's side, a wry smile on her face that fueled his fury. _You told her without consulting me,_ he raged beyond the boundaries it could go. Her secret smile - to him and not the Founder and Damar - made him angrier.

 _I did, because she deserved the good news. But no need to worry about me telling her about Odo. If word ever gets out about Odo's demise, there will be another explanation to come up._

Weyoun sighed, his boiling point lowered by a few degrees so he could answer the Female Changeling in a more controlled manner. "Yes, it is them. We will have them finished off within the hour, in a matter of time."

"Good." She canted her head forward once. "But I doubt more of our fleet will be necessary, Weyoun. I was considering a more...personal sending out."

He could not read past her smooth face, but her tone was enough without the need for words. "Anything, Founder. What would you have me do instead?"

"You and Amaya possess the combat. Call it an eye-for-an-eye, if you might. I deem it more appropriate if the two of you went and settled this yourselves. Captain Sisko's daughter will be a start to weakening his will, and Weyoun 6's treachery will at last be finished. Permission is granted to leave at once, if you must."

Of all the things, he had not expected this. _Nor have I,_ Amaya sent, another smile in place. _But think of this as an exciting challenge. We get to finish off our predecessors ourselves. How often does any clone get that chance? To see our enemies fall at our hands?_

 _You're a created clone from a human progenitor,_ he told her, returning the smile, _but you do have a point. I ought to finish Weyoun 6 off myself. I will personally see him fall then. And his lover with him, as well as that seed she carries with him. And Odo got himself into this, because I see that he is no god befit for my respect. They'll all die._

He looked behind him to see Damar's reaction. The other man looked incredulous between him and the Female Changeling, but all Weyoun could do was smirk at him. The decision had been made; he would go with his mate after the runabout.

~o~

No more Jem'Hadar attack ships, but that didn't mean any more wouldn't be coming. Mia knew the Dominion would catch on sooner or later once they noticed their vessel was missing from the charts. In the meantime, the atmosphere had lightened up in the _Rio Grande_ for the time being, and she had just got done finishing singing the song _Love Story_ by a twenty-first century country-pop superstar named Taylor Swift, whose youth and energy - and fairytale dream song such as this - reminded her of herself, and the song itself paralled to her and Weyoun in so many aspects, except for the ending which was a long way off for them both.

She burst out laughing at the looks Odo and Weyoun were both giving her, and in time they shared it with her, having a good time even at a time like this. Why shouldn't they? They were still on their way back to Deep Space 9 in another hour or two, so make the best of it.

Weyoun seemed to be doing the best of it, too, even if it was sampling the replicator's menu. Speaking of which, she started craving for an ice cream sundae, which was chocolate chip cookie dough topped with whipped cream and strawberry filling. But Weyoun couldn't settle on just one item of food; in fact, she and Odo saw him take a bite of this, a bite of that, even disposing of it once he was finished. The latest was a pepperoni pizza, and he was humming as he took a bite of it, constantly saying "Mm-hmm" as he did with the other foods before it. Mia had to admit, as she enjoyed her sundae - and Odo didn't eat or drink - Weyoun getting curious about all the food due to his lack of taste was too adorable to resist.

"Well," he said, putting the tray aside and wiping his mouth, "that was filling."

"I would hope so," Odo said. "You sampled the replicator's entire menu."

Weyoun chuckled, still chewing what was left in his mouth. He was stuffed silly, more than she was. "I enjoy the different...textures," he told Odo, and the constable looked surprised and slightly looped.

"You mean _taste_ , don't you?"

"No," Weyoun answered, laughing. "The Vorta sense of taste is quite limited. The only things we really enjoy are kava nuts and rippleberries from Kurill Prime. She knows it, too." He nodded in Mia's direction.

"Ah." Odo nodded, understanding now. "I take it that this is another result of your genetic programming, am I right, too, Mia?"

She swallowed the latest spoonful of ice cream and nodded. "Yes, but he'll explain it better than I will." She still remembered every detail of how the Vorta became what they were today, but her lover seemed more excited to tell than she was.

"She's right again, Odo. It's the Founders' way of making sure we remember our past. Surely you must know the story of how they created the Vorta?" Odo shook his head; that was Weyoun's cue to look at Mia again, surprised. "Why, Mia, I'm surprised. I would have expected you to tell him after all this time."

"Because, like I said, you're better at explaining than I am," she returned. _Because I want to hear those words roll off your tongue,_ she teased through the link, making him chuckle again, shaking his head at her rousing him again. Once he was composed but still giddy with excitement like a child, he shifted his body back to Odo and began the tale.

"The Vorta used to be...quite different from what we are today. We were forest-dwellers. Small, timid ape-like creatures living in hallowed out trees."

"Eating nuts and berries," Odo added. Weyoun nodded, his cute grin still in place before it vanished with the next part, replaced with sullen and gloom.

"And living in fear of the many predators that would hunt us for food." The smile returned. "But everything changed when one day, a wounded Changeling came stumbling through the forest, fleeing from a mob of angry solids."

"Why were they chasing him?"

Weyoun scoffed. "What does it matter, Odo? Solids have always feared and mistrusted shape-shifters, you know that." _Not me; he never scared me, not even when we first met._ His eyes moved briefly to the corner at her message before continuing at Odo's nod for him to proceed. "Well, a family of Vorta hid the Changeling from his pursuers. And in exchange for saving his life, the Changeling promised the Vorta that one day..." He raised both his hands when his voice took on a more wistful level, dreamy of the future that had come. "...we would be transformed into powerful beings, that we would become an important part of a great new empire that would stretch across the galaxy."

It sounded like a fairytale that came true when others didn't believe a word of it; it still seemed like it had to Mia, because it was TOO good to be true. Sometimes she thought - she closed this from him so his feelings wouldn't be hurt - that the Founders put this into his people's genetic makeup so they could feel grateful that they had their "gods". And Odo seemed to think so, too, but he said instead, "And the Changeling kept his word."

"Yes!" Weyoun was ecstatic. "Imagine Odo, Mia: my people were once little more than apes, and look at us _now_. Look what you and your people have done for us."

This was his way of thanking Odo for everything, for being better than his people ever were, but the appraisal did nothing for how Odo himself felt. "Well, if the story _were_ true," he said, lowering his eyes to the console before him, "it would at least prove that my people are actually capable of...generosity and kindness."

 _If the story WAS true,_ Mia whispered to Weyoun, getting a sad expression, _then poor little Vorta for letting their hearts of gold get the best of them when they helped that Changeling._

"You care about your people, don't you? In spite of everything that's happened between you." Weyoun looked like he was fighting to keep the emotions in, but Mia wasn't close to it. She would always feel for Odo, but not for his people - especially that female. Weyoun's liquid blue eyes darted in her direction, brushing against her mind as means of telling her to be nice while Odo confessed the truth.

And when he did, he was grim and on the verge of melting into his natural state. Family was messy business; as the saying went, "Nothing is thicker than blood". "Maybe I do, but that does NOT change the fact that they are responsible for a war that's killed millions."

"And that's why the Founders need to be overthrown."

His bold statement shocked both her and Odo. He had rebelled against the tyrants he once served, proclaimed that they ought to learn to live in peace with her people, but to have them overthrown and apprehended? That had come out of the blue. But he'd been keeping it in until he found the right time to voice it. And how right he was; the Founders were not suitable leaders with their conquering. He was also looking at a possible new leader for the Dominion.

But Odo looked baffled once more, though still piqued with interest. "Meaning what?" he asked.

"Think about it, Odo," Weyoun breathed, leaning forward, eyes glimmering. "You have an opportunity to rectify the mistakes your people have made. Once they have been dethroned and the Federation won the war, you can take their place and build a NEW Dominion based on _cooperation_ , not conquest. On peace and not war." He was shuddering as though in ecstasy, letting loose the chance that Odo would have and make himself a great man and idol the people beneath him would look up to, as Mia always looked up to him. The whole time she was listening, she almost cried with happiness that Weyoun was encouraging Odo to become a great leader instead of merely a law enforcer. He would become a symbol, an everlasting icon.

"A new order under _your_ leadership."

The side of Odo's face was facing her, so she could read him a little better. He was taking all of this in and without trouble; he wanted to correct the wrongdoings his people committed, and Weyoun couldn't have been a better advisor, but that didn't mean Weyoun wasn't asking for a spot in this...new order. "And what's _your_ role going to be?"

"Whatever you want it to be. I wish only to serve you."

She hated how he thought of himself as a servant and not a free man. He'd spent lifetimes serving shape-shifters; why couldn't he just settle down and be in peace, with her now that they were having a baby? _My love,_ he spoke when he heard the question, _I'll be at peace with you once this war is over and I -_

His message was cut off when the both of them and Odo both heard the alarm go off. More trouble had come as predicted before.

 **Weyoun 6 really believes in peace, wants to clean the mess up if only the damned Damar, Weyoun 7 and the Jem'Hadar didn't interfere. And the song "Love Story" is a kind of telling of the Romeo and Juliet story, which was referenced in an earlier chapter if anyone remembers. Awesome parallels to Mia and Weyoun, the song is. :D**


	30. Crash and Burn

**The name of the chapter comes from a song by Savage Garden of the same name.**

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Crash and Burn

"Alright, then you can start by telling me HOW one runabout is going to survive an assault by three Jem'Hadar ships."

Weyoun stared first at the flashing red light past Odo and then at the console, then at Mia, who sat behind them and held onto the arms of her chair once again for dear life. Weyoun 7 had ordered more ships, and this was beyond a single like last time. He wished he had a better answer such as getting up and behind them like last time, but he doubted a repeat would work on three without one or two catching on and sneaking behind them to counterattack. "I'm sure you'll think of something," he said to Odo, as much as he hated to. He felt so helpless at the present, despite Mia's attempts to reassure him.

 _We'll try to get away...but I'm afraid, too,_ she admitted. _Afraid we won't make it, and you'll be forced to activate your implant to save our lives. I don't want you to kill yourself and leave me alone again. Leave me to raise the baby alone, or maybe that other Weyoun taking me once he knows you're gone._

He didn't _want_ to take his own life, not only for his sake but for hers and the baby. _Believe me, I don't want to die, either. But don't lose hope, beloved. We'll make it out of this mess no matter how difficult it is._ He recited those particular words from that song she sang in that heavenly voice not long ago, knowing it would make her smile, and it did.

Odo's voice brought them both back to attention, the red light still flashing. "There's an ice field not far from here," he noted from the map of the sector they were in. "We _might_ be able to hide among the common fragments...but we don't have much time. They're closing fast."

~o~

The three ships - one carrying Weyoun 7 and Amaya - dropped out of warp after intercepting the _Rio Grande_ , and now they found themselves coming out to meet an ice field in space. _Damned fools,_ he sent to Amaya as well as hissed aloud to himself. _But no matter their level of foolishness. We're getting close._

There it was: a clustered array of rock-semblance matter despite his weak vision, given the details were explained to him by his Jem'Hadar. Spreading out and clear amid a lone star the size of a sun in the background, and a ring of smoke through them, attaching them together. The passengers and the pilot himself of the runabout thought they could outmatch them and hide in here. "Weyoun 6, Odo and Mia picked the wrong spot to hide," Amaya voiced beside him. "But we'll find them, won't we, darling?"

He looked down at her and smiled. "We certainly will. We are not giving up until we find those three, even if we have to waste our own lives out here." And that included bombing these ice particles if they had to. He wouldn't care if the runabout was hiding inside any one of them - their bodies would go with the ship if they had to.

~o~

Weyoun wasn't sure about this once, just being here with his pregnant lover and his god - Odo might not be one, but he would always think of him as one - in this mass of chunks of ice, as he called it to the pilot himself. These common fragments would hide them well, but not for long, he sensed. "The Jem'Hadar will have no trouble finding us."

Odo brushed off his concerns with a wave of the hand. "Not if we _become_ the ice."

He was rendered speechless, glancing his way and keeping his eyes on as Odo guided the runabout swiftly and came across one fragment with a massive crack, making it resemble a cave, as Mia sent to him. _I went through those things a few times, on a few systems before. And I do mean in person, not just in holosuites Quark gets everyday for his customers._

For his blurred eyes, Weyoun could see the darkness approaching in the entrance, which eventually gave way to eerie brightness and some loose chunks inside which Odo blasted away for them until they came to a full stop. Odo did the honors of turning everything off, power and all, except for the console controls for him to use. "Well," he announced, "with the power off and the runabout in thermal contact with the ice, we won't generate enough of an energy signature for their sensors to read."

Weyoun looked at the vast wall of ice before them, Odo's words finally settling in terms of meaning. "We become the ice," he intoned, shaking his head slightly and smiling gratefully. "Only a god could think of such a miracle."

Mia shifted in her chair and grunted. "Well, boys, let's just hope the Jem'Hadar give up their search before we...freeze to death." He shifted in his own seat and looked her way. With the power off, the subzero temperature would eventually find its way in and possess their bodies both inside and out. _My faith will keep me warm,_ he sent to her as well as voiced to Odo, who wrapped his arms across his chest and looked out the window before them.

"Mmm, perhaps. But in an hour, you both might want to trade faith in for a thermal blanket."

He tried to retain that faith regardless of the warning, but in under an hour, Odo was right after all. Because he soon began to feel like he was on ice, and so was Mia. Odo stood for them and got them each thermal blankets and one for himself, but he was surprisingly collected about the atmosphere. However, Weyoun was so cold he couldn't feel any part of his body. He couldn't stop his shuddering and chattering teeth. _My love?_

 _So am I._

He managed to shift in his seat for her to shakily stand and make her way over to him, and he opened his blanket to expose himself so she could squeeze between his legs and sit down, her back pressing against the front of his torso. Weyoun wrapped his arms around her and closed his own thermal blanket around her, still unable to control his own chills. But it seemed no matter how hard they tried to keep each other warm, the power would remain off only to protect them from the still searching Jem'Hadar ships. If those damned imbeciles didn't give up now, they would end up PART of the ice, and not just a figure of speech.

Mia turned her face around and buried it into the place where his shoulder and neck met, kissing him and nuzzling at the same time. But Weyoun was barely conscious of it because of the pressure in his lungs that made his shudders breathless. Life support must have been shut off, too, but he had to make sure. "O-Odo?" he managed. "When you said you were cutting the power to all systems...did that include _life support?_ "

He nodded. "I'm afraid so."

Weyoun nodded, too. "Oh, that...explains it. I think we're both having trouble breathing." He held Mia closer to him when she began to tremble as violently as he was. _Hold on, just a little longer._

Now it seemed Odo was beginning to struggle, too, because of the sound of his labored breaths and rigid shifts in position. "I wish we had enough oxygen left for another three hours." Three hours was too long, and they would not make it by then. Dying here in space, encased in ice, was never on Weyoun's agenda, and certainly not on Mia's. He couldn't let her die out here before their child had her chance to survive. And Odo seemed to know what they were thinking. "Of course," he added, "by then, we'll probably have frozen to death."

Panic flared in Weyoun once again. "But you _can't_ die," he protested. "You must survive in order to rebuild the Dominion. And these two can't die because they mean the universe to me." He slowly shifted his face so he could bury it into Mia's below-zero scented curls. It wasn't much of a distraction, but a part of her to feel was comfort enough, and for him to do the same to her.

A familiar ear-crushing explosion reached his ears, and Mia held onto him tighter than before. "They found us." He bared his teeth as he gritted them at the same time. The Jem'Hadar were firing at every ice molecule before them, either hoping to reveal the runabout to them or destroy it with the ice encasing it. Either way, what were they going to do now?

"You're not going to outrun those ships are you?" Mia gasped, jumping up when Odo turned the power back on, her blanket falling to the floor as she abandoned Weyoun's hold and returned to her seat.

He snorted. "What choice do we have?"

The ice before their vision was gone before they could get out through where they originally came; Weyoun wasn't surprised, because those shots sounded so near, but now he was afraid for the lives of Odo and Mia. The former took the switch and flew them away from their site only to be tailed by one Jem'Hadar ship which began to fire at them.

A few shots missed them with Odo's great skill, but this latest one to the rear sent the back of the interior cockpit into vivid sparks, and soon smoke filled the room, along with Mia's screams of "We're on fire!" Weyoun followed her gaze and saw the flickering flames not far from her, and if they weren't put out soon, perhaps the ship would be toasted and its lifeforms with it.

"There's an extinguisher behind you, Weyoun!" Odo shouted. "Get the flames out now!"

Two more shots made him finally act on impulse and rise to grab said extinguisher. Weyoun nearly fell off his feet as he made way for the rising amber flames, his finger on the trigger, and once the smoky mist was released, the hazardous fumes were gone until only smoke lingered in the air. Another impact wracked the ship, and this time he fell to the floor only to -

"Mia!" he shouted when he looked up and saw her collapse to the floor with him, and nearly on her stomach. She howled, turning over so she was sitting upwards and clutching her stomach. "Mia, oh gods!" Weyoun yelled as he scrambled over to her. "Odo, are there ANY nearby systems?!" He wished there was so they could somehow evade these monsters on their tail, but he doubted the ship would be in much condition for a safe landing...

And Odo, thankfully, pulled the map up in spite of the obvious damage to the rear of the runabout. "There's a nearby class M planet approaching, but we're losing control fast, and I can only manage this far -!"

" _Hold on!_ "Weyoun shouted as he took his beloved into his arms and held her close on the ground, both sliding across the floor until his back hit the wall behind him, underneath the console counter as the runabout was hit once again, and then the gravity shifted beneath them which allowed them both to slide forward and make way for the front console underneath, Weyoun shifting so he took the blow once more for her, his back numb with pain, as the runabout's nose tipped downwards as they began to head for the planet's surface, Odo shouting to them both to hold on as they braced themselves for the impact which was getting hotter and hotter...

 _I love you,_ Weyoun sent, _in case we all die._ He looked into her eyes when he gave her the message, their bond holding them both together with their arms around each other. He leaned in and kissed her as she returned the message, the salty taste of tears on his lips; that was one of the other few, limited tastes a Vorta possessed naturally that didn't involve food.

 _Then all four of us go down together. All this time I hoped it wouldn't come to this._

He sighed and lowered his eyes from hers. _So did I. But then we will be together for eternity in the supposed next life._

~o~

The runabout had been shot down enough, and now it was "red-tailed" - an expression meaning it was on fire at the rear end - and heading downwards to the surface of the planet beneath them. The system did not appear to have a name, but it was class M and terrestrial for them to survive. And guaranteed, it possessed plant life and no current humanoid or human inhabitants. Nevertheless, Weyoun 7 could assume that all three of the lifeforms inside would die from the crash. He could smile his victory that way - but on second thought, they might crash and survive either way. There was no telling until further investigation.

"Weyoun," Amaya said gently, "perhaps we should wait and relax for a bit after the long travel in space? We will still catch them, guaranteed they wouldn't go that far if their ship is severely damaged. The Founder won't mind as long as we accomplish what she sent us out for."

He pondered this, then nodded. "Yes, I suppose you're right. First," he commanded, "contact the rest of our escorts and tell them we will go down to the system and rest for our next plan of action. We will find the fugitives dead or alive soon enough." A small, sinister smile graced his lips that he turned his gaze back to Amaya and leaned down to capture her mouth with his, allowing his tongue to wrap with hers.

~o~

The rear of of the runabout was destroyed, smoke in the air, some sparks flying - and chairs turned over. His lungs struggled to take in cherished oxygen as he raised himself with all his might and pulled himself through the opened doors at the back that showed an unfamiliar wilderness and fresh air, as well as nightfall. However, he stopped when he heard a noise behind him and quickly turned around, seeing a shimmering golden form moving his way. Odo was all right. "Odo, thank the Founders you are alive!" Weyoun gasped out, hurrying over.

The security chief had resumed his humanoid form then, but his eyes were hard. "Of course I am, and you don't look like you've been hurt yourself. But what about your woman?"

 _Mia!_

Weyoun felt his relieved smile fade altogether when his mind touched hers; she was still alive, but where was she? "Mia!" he yelled, hurrying past Odo and shoving fallen chairs aside and broken electronic parts. "Mia? MIA!"

"I'm here. Stop yelling," her voice coughed out from somewhere to his left. He jerked his head in that direction. She was right there, underneath the counter with her back against the wall and cradling her bulging stomach. He didn't see any blood on her body, and she wasn't flinching by any means, but she was taking a slow time with crawling to her feet. Weyoun rushed to her side and helped her up. She leaned into him once she was steady, sighing and wrapping her arms around him, his own coming up to be around her back. "I thought we were dead," she whispered, almost sobbing with relief that he wanted to. "And the baby is all right, I think. She's still moving."

Weyoun drew his head back and kissed her forehead, tasting perspiration and smoke, sobbing with relief that their child was unharmed. _Thank the Founders, little one, you're well,_ he sent, and the baby stirred in response. "I thought so, too, but we're alive." He looked over his shoulder to see Odo behind him now. "And I think wherever we are, we'll be here for awhile before we contact for help."

Odo nodded in agreement and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I agree, but first we have to get out of here and find someplace safer than in here."

As it turned out, the rear of the runabout had detached itself as soon as it went past the surface of the planet, which Weyoun found himself eyeing again, unsure of how to praise it, but it reminded him - in a small way - of Kurill Prime, with the trees and floral arrangements, but Mia would understand it better than him. _It's like the Amazon jungle on Earth, humid in the air and hot, but cooler at night, I think. Exquisite, exotic colorful flowers about, such as orchids and hibiscus known. But you wouldn't know much about flowers besides those on your native planet even when you can't appreciate them,_ she teased him. _The earth is soft, moist soil and scattered patches of grass, moss on the trees, and rivers running wild into a more vast one which dominates the whole landscape._

It sounded like Kurill, indeed. Weyoun sighed and held her beside him as Odo inspected the damage minus the missing rear. "Well, looks like we'll all be here for awhile definitely, even after Captain Sisko returns from his conference. By now, he'll notice both of us -" He turned his attention to Mia. "- missing and send out a search party. But I don't think he'll locate our signal when the communication systems are down."

"What about a distress beacon?" Mia asked, wincing and tightening her hand around Weyoun's arm. She was in some pain that none of them noticed before. He wondered if she broke something and didn't want him to know - _No, it's not an arm or anything. It's -_ She broke off when she let loose a little cry that got Odo's attention as well. He rushed over when she cried again and fell to her knees, clutching her stomach.

"Mia, what's wrong?!" They helped her into an easier sitting position, her back against a fallen tree trunk next to the runabout. Her legs bent at the knees slightly spreading, and when Weyoun looked down, he saw her skirt was a darker shade, and her legs were shining on the insides. Was that what he thought it was?

"It's my...water," Mia managed. "The baby's coming."

~o~

Odo still thought of Nerys since departing DS9. He counted on her and had promised he would return safely, but now the runabout had been shot down. Not only with himself, but these two - and now Mia was crying in pain and telling him and Weyoun the baby was coming.

He was shocked that it had to be today of all days; she had one more month, but this wasn't her decision to bring it into the world when it wasn't ready. He wondered if the trauma of the crash had caused it, but the important factor was that it was happening. But as she said, the distress signal had to be set.

"Hold on, we'll get you comfortable. Weyoun, help me." He had to make sure she was relaxed first before he got to setting the signal. Her well-being came above everything else.

Mia shrugged off her tunic for him to fold it into the form of a pillow and placed it behind her head to elevate it from the discomfort of the rough bark of the trunk. Weyoun stood by, looking unsure of what to do for the woman carrying his baby, now coming. "You can start by looking for water to wash her skin and keep her calm," Odo said. "I don't know how far a river or water source is from here, but I'll take care of her for you."

"I will, but Odo, with all due respect -" So, the Vorta finally decided to speak against him; that was a first. And it was about time; Odo was tired of all this respect. "- she is having my child, and I want to be by her side."

"You'll help her by searching for the water," Odo snapped. "Go get it now while I take care of this." Mia's legs were still bent at the knees, spread enough for him to check on the first stage of giving birth that he knew of, the memory of the discussion with Dr. Bashir crystal clear. She was hit with contractions every four minutes, each one getting stronger. Each contraction pulled the uterus around the child wider, and this was known as cervical dilation - a Terran medical term. This stage took some time before dilation would be full, and thus delivery would begin. Odo couldn't believe he was doing this, delivering Mia's baby at a time like this.

"Weyoun, please hurry!" she called when he finally made way for the runabout in search of a bucket or something. Tears were already streaming down her cheeks, the sight making Odo melt on the inside. She was vulnerable in undergoing a life-changing event for her; Odo vividly recalled the little Changeling before it left him so soon, even when its body joined with his. His life had, for the first time, felt more complete than it had ever been - and it would have stayed that way if there had been a chance he and Dr. Mora could have saved its life. Nerys hadn't wanted a child until she changed her mind when the O'Briens' baby was born, but like Odo, she lost him. Sometimes he thought the fact they both lost children was the reason they were so perfect together.

Now this little one needed him to help with hers. Bajoran women underwent serenity and little pain, but not humans. Mia's cheeks were flushed with worry and impending pain, the tears increasing in amounts. "You're going to be all right, Mia," he assured her, reaching out and wiping the moisture away; her skin was hot beneath his hand. "You'll both make it." He placed his other hand on her abdomen where the baby was slowly working its way out if its protective sack inside.

There was a rustle behind them. Weyoun had returned with the bucket of water, worry etched across his features. The bucket he retrieved sloshed some water onto the moist ground. "I have it, Odo; how is she?"

"I'm fine," Mia croaked, a smile on her face the best it could go. "And it's getting closer."

Both men helped her throughout the painfully long ordeal, Weyoun beside her and holding her hand, even bathing her with the water he found from the river some yards from the site. He continued to kiss her on the forehead and the lips, whispering soft words of love; Odo was surprised she didn't bite his tongue as she screamed when the contractions began to grow harder. He thought her howls would rouse any fauna lifeforms in the area, but he put his mind off of attention around them and concentrated on how the baby's head crowned at its mother's entrance.

And then finally, after an hour or perhaps longer - and some blood, if not a lot - choking cries filled his ears, the parents' and the air around them. In Odo's arms was the baby, peach-colored and covered with little red splotches of blood, eyes closed for the moment before opening to show a pair of light violet eyes - just like the father. The hair was in soft tufts of black, and the ears were Vorta. But the face...looked just like the mother. Odo was laughing at the success and the indescribable joy as he held his and Nerys' godchild in his arms. "Oh...it's a girl!"

Weyoun, her father, looked over the "hill" that was his lover's still-spread, raised legs and gasped as well as wept with laughter as he saw his daughter for the first time. "Oh, by the Founders, she's beautiful! Mia, you did wonderful!" He sobbed with her and leaned in to kiss her again before abandoning her for the moment so he could sit beside Odo. "Odo, she's so marvelous!" He picked up the medical kit that he got out of the runabout earlier and helped detach the baby from her cord, before taking her into his arms, still laughing like the proud father he was. Everything Odo had felt with the baby Changeling; he never thought he would see such emotion in the former Dominion representative.

His lavender eyes were darker than before, and spilling what Mia had done while in labor. He wasn't human like she was, but he possessed a heart like she did - his weeping for his new daughter born made him look like he _was_ a human being.

The child now found itself in her mother's arms, and the father began to clean off the bodily fluids still on her skin while Mia looked into the eyes of her daughter, smiling painfully but happily. "Riona."

"Love?" Weyoun looked at her and frowned slightly.

"Riona," she repeated. "That's the name I picked for her. On Earth, it's an Irish-Gaelic name meaning 'pure'."

Odo looked at the wonderful image before him and smiled. This was a family in front of him, a family long separated by their opposing sides yet managed to stay together in spite of threatening destruction. This was not the love you saw every day in life - and it made him recall the suggestion of proposing marriage, and how Nerys had been wanting a baby that she could raise herself. What they both lost, they wanted to start it over again with _each other._ If they ever got back to Deep Space 9, Odo would go to her and shove all hesitation aside, drop on one knee in front of everyone on the Promenade before her. Just like Weyoun.

 **Riona was perfect the moment I found it for the name of Weyoun and Mia's daughter. And for Odo to deliver the baby was more than appropriate, as well as the fact that him and Weyoun rejoiced over the arrival made me cry with them. :')**


	31. Anywhere

**I forgot to mention that "** **Rechercé Refugee" by ColubridCola was inspiration for the trio crashing on a class M planet such as this one. :) That gem is so underrated.**

 **I also bring you the last of Evanescence's "Anywhere" in both the title of this chapter and throughout. :D**

Chapter Thirty

Anywhere

Her body was still in some pain, but it was going away soon if only taking its time. The worst was over, and now the moment had come as she held her new baby in her arms, the man she loved and the father beside her and looking their pride and joy over, smiling and crying with her. And Odo was watching them with a face that the new mother she was cried harder over. He was just as happy as they were. And Keiko O'Brien's words from nearly two years ago came back with full force.

 _"It's the most wonderful feeling ever, feeling them stir inside you until the day comes when they arrive, and that means a new title for you, which is mother. And it's natural to be afraid because this is a major step for you in life, and I remember that way when Molly came along. But it also means so much love you want to give and receive back when they grow, and always making sure they're all right and have everything they need. It's an emotion like no other, and even your husband will share it with you."_

The fear was over, replaced with joy. She was a mother now, too, and there was so much love in her that she would give to this beautiful little girl in her arms. "Keiko was right," she said to both Weyoun and Odo, still crying. Riona had stopped and was now cooing and coughing a little, looking around her in wonder. "This is nothing like anything else in the universe. And I have someone to share it with." She found herself looking into Weyoun's beautiful light amethyst eyes, which was devoid of the cruel sensuality the previous bore and instead swirling with undying devotion he would give her now that he was free to be with her. It made her lean up and kiss him.

"Thank you, Odo," she said when the kiss broke.

His response was adorable, with only a lower of the eyes, shake of the head and a mumble of incoherent words that sounded like "Never thought I would live to do something like this".

~o~

Mia and the baby had both fallen asleep, and the baby wrapped up in one of the thermal blankets taken from the runabout. Odo was currently working to send out the distress signal, leaving Weyoun to watch over his lover and their new daughter, feeling content for the first time in his life now that one step in the hard part was over...but they might as well still be hunted for. _No, Weyoun, don't think like that,_ Mia sent before she drifted off into sleep. _Not tonight._

He looked around and smelled the dank, moist but otherwise fresh air around them. Perhaps he could call this paradise if not by the sheer picturesque environment he couldn't judge properly like he could judge his own family and desires. They were surrounded by isolation and nature, protecting them like the forests of Kurill Prime in that one shared dream they would have once in awhile, with Odo protecting them all. Just for tonight and perhaps in the morning, this was all he needed: to be here with his family like they both wanted from the start.

 _We're leaving here tonight_  
 _There's no need to tell anyone_  
 _They'd only hold us down_  
 _So by the morning light_  
 _We'll be half way to anywhere_  
 _Where love is more than just your name_

He leaned back against the trunk and looked up at the sky, his beloved spooned beside him with their child in her arms. Her curls were tossed behind her shoulder so her face was free for him to reach over and caress her cheek as lightly as he could so he wouldn't disturb her from her sleep. Then he looked down at baby Riona - what a lovely name, and Mia made an excellent choice in selecting it - and her small ears and fluffy hair, snuggled in her mother's embrace. If things worked out in the end, that meant either he or Mia had to be around her while one of them performed life's duties for their family. But then he remembered her talking about how the Chief of Operations of DS9 had a wife who was a botanist and schoolteacher, two children involved, and yet they both kept their careers while keeping the children on their toes. How they did that was a wonder, but all he wanted was for Mia and their daughter to be happy.

He reached over and picked up Riona's little hand which had rested its way on Mia's heart; her fingers could easily wrap around a single one of his own, which made him smile. Her warmth made his skin rise by a few degrees. Innocence like this didn't deserve to be destroyed by his successor who wanted nothing more than to see him and his family dead - as well as their protector who was still in the runabout.

Which gave him more time to do the one thing he wanted to since his lover and child fell asleep. Weyoun reached back into his pocket, praying with all his heart that the ring was still there - and it was! Baring his teeth in a grin, Weyoun withdrew the tanzanite clustered band and held it to his eyes. Though the details weren't his original option, he trusted the seller's judgment. There had been another which had this combined with diamonds, but for some reason, diamonds were too common and didn't seem to appeal in his mind, despite the story's clear details of violet blue flickering across fireworks; the next choice had done the trick, the keywords being "the rarest love you will ever find". He knew Mia would love it when she saw it, but he couldn't stop the tremors if she hesitated with her answer.

The ring slid across that one finger of her left hand and fit snugly but not tight to leave a mark. It was perfect, and that was all he needed to know and see. "You're all I ever wanted, Mia; please say yes when you see this," he whispered to her sleeping face, leaning forward to kiss her cheek.

 _I have dreamt of a place for you and I_  
 _No one knows who we are there_  
 _All I want is to give my life only to you_  
 _I've dreamt so long I cannot dream anymore_  
 _Let's run away, I'll take you there_

A throat being cleared made him look up. "Well," Odo said, rubbing his hands together, "luckily for any of us, I sent out the signal, but the rest of the communication system was down, so it's as we all keep saying, we're stuck here for who knows how long." He sat down on the trunk not even a foot from where Weyoun and his family lay. "Which means we have to head out in the morning to look for food and water, the usual."

He looked over and glimpsed mother and child sleeping as if they hadn't moved in forever, but they were still breathing. "Nothing from the little one, yet? I'm told they love to scream for attention for the first couple months, according to Chief O'Brien."

Weyoun laughed and shook his head. "From what I learned through my predecessor, yes. He grabbed every resource he could get his hands on without the knowledge of the Female Changeling. He was determined to learn even though the topic was foreign to him." Mia shifted in her sleep and sighed softly; he lowered his voice to make sure he didn't wake her. "He never thought he would find someone like her in his life, or even leave the Dominion for her. Now that I found the courage to risk everything I had for her - I would go anywhere with her that she wanted me to, give everything I have for her."

 _Forget this life  
_ _Come with me_  
 _Don't look back; you're safe now_  
 _Unlock your heart_  
 _Drop your guard_ _  
_ _No one's left to stop you_

"Hmm, spoken like a true man." Odo nodded, bringing his closed hands up to rest under his chin. "You never know when you will ever find happiness in troubled times like this," he agreed. "To think that I..." He trailed off there, and Weyoun had the distinct feeling he was going to say something that had to do with himself. He urged him on. "Major Kira is the one in my life."

Oh, that was right. Weyoun 5 learned of the constable's relationship with the first officer of DS9, who was like a mother to Mia when her own died long ago. They were almost inseparable, as well. How was it even possible that someone like his beloved could exist and help anyone around her when she struggled as they did? "I suppose you have Mia to thank for that," Weyoun said with a smile, making Odo chuckle.

"Oh, well, she wasn't entirely involved in the beginning. I'd known Kira for years before the Siskos came to the station. It was always there, and I wish I knew how and when it began. We were wonderful friends and colleagues, and I was afraid of destroying it in any way." He sighed and lowered his face, covering his eyes partially. "But my people were what stood between us, and they still do. No matter how easy it is to say and believe we could make it together, but I had found my home where I was born before we were all sent off into space - and it makes it difficult knowing their misdeeds. Nerys makes my world complete when they don't. It's so...difficult I don't know if I can explain it any further."

Weyoun felt his arm around his sleeping lover loosen as the words settled into his very being. Odo was suffering from a powerful love threatened by his people who had been wanting him to come home, but he was torn between love and hate for the species he belonged to. Just as Weyoun was, but here he was with the woman who meant everything to him. He chose her over the evil he now regarded the Dominion as. He voiced what his thoughts possessed now. "You're fighting to choose the woman you love and who loves you back, over your people you know aren't worthy of forgiveness," he whispered. "At least, you believe so?"

"Yes, but it's so difficult. Family is...complicated business."

He lasped into silence, turning down to look at Mia still sleeping, and Riona twitching a little but not waking either. Then his eyes landed on the ring around Mia's finger and an idea dawned on him. Based on their discussion thus far, he came to the conclusion that he and his god weren't so different after all. "Odo, it came to me," he said, looking back up but avoiding direct eye contact, "you should take the major's hand like I want to take Mia's."

It made sense: if Odo and Kira were married, then no one - not even the Founders - would be able to part them. He waited for a long moment of silence, the air thick with it that it made him start to feel anxious, but when he finally spoke, it wasn't what Weyoun expected.

"What _I_ think _you_ should do now is get your beauty rest with your family. We have tomorrow and who knows how much longer to remain alive before we're rescued." He didn't answer yes or no to the suggestion, so it wasn't direct. But Odo was smiling slightly and standing to walk over to the bucket of water at the edge of the trunk, tilting it to empty it for himself. He was returning to his natural state for the night. "As must I. I can barely hold my solid form much longer."

"Good night, Odo." Weyoun smiled as he watched the constable shimmer and dissolve into his gelatinous state and rested into the bucket, despite the watery remnants clinging to its inner walls. He flushed when he realized how it was so close to natural femininity, and quickly closed his eyes to float across the ocean of sleep with his family. When he did, he felt content and blissful.

If he didn't know any better, he'd say Odo was finally starting to like him.

Sleep seemed to last an eternity, so when he opened his eyes, Weyoun blinked when bright sunlight warmed his skin, but he felt like he was damp with sweat because of the humid weather. Sighing, he stretched until his bones popped and relaxed his muscles. He found himself staring up at a cloudless sky and no chances of rain, as far as he knew about the weather, and then turned his attention to his side to see Mia and Riona still sleeping as he remembered; he smiled to himself at the euphoric moment, until his body began to burn hotter than before. His skin was so light and sensitive it could contract markings easily, especially in this weather.

Odo was still in his liquid state in the bucket four feet from them, so he assumed it was safe for the time being. Weyoun stood and stretched once more, the effect the same as before, and sat down on the trunk, taking off his boots and stood again, unfastening his jacket and pulling his shirt over his head, the whole front of his chest and back exposed to clean air and breathing along with his lungs. He inhaled and let it out through his nostrils. Weyoun then laid his shirts on the trunk and soon placed his pants with them, naked and free. Free without a care, including one of two hunting parties after him and his family, which he now looked down at to see the baby now awake and squirming in her mother's arms, grunting and choking cries now. Smiling, Weyoun knelt down and placed his hands on either side of her underneath the arms and pulled her from Mia's hold. In response, Mia rolled onto her side and wrapped her arms around herself, but upon awareness creeping over and noticing the baby was missing, her eyes opened and looked around, finally glancing up and seeing Weyoun naked with their baby in his arms. She burst out laughing and quickly looked down.

"Weyoun!"

"What?" His face fell, the baby cooing and palming at him, trying to get his attention. "You've seen me before." He meant his predecessor, but she knew what he meant.

"If Odo sees you, he'll go blind," Mia told him, still laughing. "If you're going to clean yourselves up, then get away before he comes to." She rolled onto her side, trying to stop and failed. Weyoun smirked and rolled his eyes, looking down to see Riona's face split into a wide, toothless smile that made him laugh.

"Well, then, you and I should get going to freshen up," he cooed to her as he reached down and picked up the thermal blanket he used for himself and began to walk away from Mia down in the direction the river waited for them.

When he found this river, it appeared calm and peaceful, devoid of any wildlife, but you could never be too careful of snakes and the likes - but not this one, from last night. Except he wouldn't take the chance especially with his daughter in his arms. Weyoun felt like a deity without anything on his body as he carried his baby daughter over and stepped into the water, continuing until it touched his waist. His body vibrated with exhilaration, bathing in the morning sun with his child in his embrace. He looked into Riona's eyes - light violet, like his own - and smiled when she cooed and reached for him, one hand grasping his left ear...and a tingle coursed through his nerves with the familiarity of reading emotions and thoughts. Riona was barely a day old and already picked up on these things. It intrigued and baffled him at the same time.

"Amazing," he breathed, already feeling like he could actually do this even though he had yet to take on the challenges of being a father. He knew that he could count on Captain Sisko, but they had yet to meet again and - hopefully - make amends. He truly wanted the man to accept him as Mia's husband, as a part of his family. Rejection was the last thing on the agenda. Sighing again, Weyoun brought his little daughter to his chest, her head resting against his heart, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"I won't _ever_ let anything happen to you."

~o~

"Weyoun? Riona?"

She'd awoken from her brief nap only to find her lover and daughter still gone. And Odo's bucket was empty, too. Worry snapped her instincts to life, and she was on her feet despite the fact she'd just given birth and wasn't cleared for physical movement. She wished Julian was here; she could use his medical opinion. "Odo?" she called, stretching herself and feeling no pains in her abdomen, or any form of heavy bleeding.

She looked in the direction of the runabout and blew a sigh of relief when Odo walked out from the back. He stopped when he saw her standing. "Mia, you should be resting," he scolded. "I was just checking on the comm system and trying to see if anything could be fixed while we were here."

She lowered herself back to the ground and spread the blanket beneath her out smoother, placing her head against the trunk once more; it was now nothing more than an uncomfortable pillow to the back of her head. "Well, how is it coming?"

"Everything else is still down, but it was luck that we had enough power left to send the distress," he replied. "I was about to leave to find you and the family something to eat - any fruits and vegetation this place might have - but your lover hasn't come back, it seems."

"Never fear, the both of you. We were just finishing washing up and brought everything we need."

"Oh, well, deprive me of my job," Odo said, lightly joking. Was it her imagination, or was he actually beginning to like Weyoun more now? What started this?

 _We were talking about us last night - and about him and Major Kira. I think he now sees me the way you see me. I'm more humbled than I have ever been in my life._ Weyoun was fully dressed with Riona wrapped in her blanket, tucked upright into one arm while his other carried what looked like a bucket full of fruits resembling mangoes and papayas. Her stomach rumbled when she realized how hungry she was, and felt sorry for Weyoun because he couldn't taste them like he would taste rippleberries. _I'll live by it; filling is better than taste for me. It's survival that's more important._

 _You're right._ Mia watched as Odo walked over and took the bucket from him with a small smile he could manage, and Mia looked down when she rubbed her hands together out of habit - and felt it on that particular finger of her left hand. The most beautiful tanzanite ring glittered before her eyes. It had to be from Weyoun, who else? She looked up and gasped, unsure of what to say but knew what this meant; Weyoun looked like he was about to say something when figures materialized from around them, and phaser rifles were pointed at them.

"All right, no one move. Girl, get up now."

She stood fast and joined the others, Odo dropping the bucket of fruits and putting a hand on her shoulder to make sure she stayed calm. She didn't normally panic at times like this, but Jem'Hadar surrounded them and pointed their weapons at them - _they found us,_ she sent to Weyoun, who held Riona close to him and reached down to take her hand into his; she brought her other up to touch his forearm as a short-lived gesture of comfort.

"If any of you three make a move, we will fire," one of the Jem'Hadar warned, no emotion in his voice or eyes. He was shot down from behind by another voice of pompous refinement.

"Lower your weapons; they will not die just yet. Not until I finish my part." The crowd parted, and in strolled none other than Weyoun 7 himself, followed by Amaya - Mia's Vorta counterpart, who smiled just as maliciously as her partner. Weyoun 7 stood in front of the group with his smile slowly diverting into a turbulent curl of the lips, namely at his predecessor.

"So, we meet again as planned - and for the last time."

~o~

Captain Sisko returned, and it was about damn time when his desk came back before then. She would have cursed O'Brien out for the trade of the captain's desk, but Ensign Nog brought it back. The station was still needing repairs, but the repairs were the least of her worries because two very important people had not yet returned.

She began to worry for Odo and Mia.

And not long after Captain Sisko returned and settled in while O'Brien was finishing with applying the new graviton stabilizers to the _Defiant_ , the bridge of the station received a _distress signal_ of all things. "It's from the _Rio Grande,_ " Dax announced. "Major, isn't Constable Odo using that runabout?"

Her blood ran cold, which meant her heart began to freeze, too. "Yes," she answered, turning her attention to Captain Sisko when he asked if anyone had seen his daughter, because he could not find her anywhere. Now Nerys remembered that Odo had taken her with him. With this signal sent out to them, it became clear to all of them that she and Odo were in danger.

Her father exploded then.

"Goddamn it, what is Mia doing out there with our chief of security?! And when she is eight months pregnant, of all things! She could very much get herself killed or perhaps that baby - my grandchild - hurt as well!" He slammed his palm flat on the railing, still seething that Kira knew she had to say something if he was to cool himself down so they could send out their rescue party to retrieve Odo and Mia.

"Captain, for Mia's sake - and for Odo - please, calm down. We'll get her back," she assured him. And Odo, her mind and heart whispered to her. If anything happened to him or Mia, she would lose her mind and swear never to love anyone again. Benjamin looked at her for a moment before nodding and calling out her, Dax and Worf, as well as Nog and Chief O'Brien. They had two of their own to rescue, and it was best to arm themselves just in case there was anyone they didn't like out there.

In a time of war, you could never go unarmed.

 **Uh oh, our trio is in trouble. :O But the plan all along was for a delicious climax, so stay tuned.**


	32. For Honor, For Love

**Includes some epic duels that have also been planned since the beginning and you will now get to see. :D Have fun with some epic one-on-one.**

Chapter Thirty-One

For Honor, For Love

They were trapped.

He knelt on the ground, his hands cuffed behind his back, with a phaser rifle pointed at him as the silent order to not shapeshift or resist in any form unless he wanted to be shot, or the other two beside them. Mia was between him and Weyoun, the baby now in that Mia-look-alike Vorta's arms and wailing uncontrollably, squirming and trying to get away from the horrible creature.

"Odo, Mia, I'm so sorry," Weyoun whispered to them both; from the corner of his eyes, Odo saw those wide lavender eyes glaze but held back the tears. He wouldn't let himself appear weak in front of their captors now caught up to them, not that he blamed him.

Weyoun 7 heard him with those "good ears" all Vorta possessed if their eyesight wasn't so. "Too late for apologies, I'm afraid." He walked in front of them with his hands clasped behind his back, holding himself high and regal as ever, then gracefully turned to face them full-front and tilted his head down to eye them critically - notably his predecessor. "And too late to beg one last time for your life. Not that you ever would," he added with a curving upwards of the left side of his mouth. "None of you are foolish enough to do that."

Odo knew he could not sit around and play nice to this other version of the man beside him. "I don't have time for your games, Weyoun," he growled. "Because for all I know, you won't be able to finish in time for Captain Sisko to come around." If only Sisko and any of the others would get here soon...

But Weyoun 7 laughed and threw his head back. "Captain Sisko might be on his way here, but I doubt he would make it in time, Odo. The Founder knew about my trailing of you three, but she doesn't know you're among." Odo bowed his eye slightly; of course, if the Female Changeling knew, she would have this Weyoun's head. He was determined to see to it that they were finished off. It had gotten through Weyoun 7's head that he wasn't like the Founder he served or the others; another relief, but once again, it cost his life. "Damar wanted to kill you himself, as you know, but I forbade it. However, I believe I came to my senses because you're too stubborn yourself to rejoin your own people - the ones who conceived you and welcomed you back only for your refusal. As well, taking in a fugitive has its consequences." His eyes landed on Weyoun 6, who returned the scowl indignantly.

"You're no better than I am with my defection," he snarled. "You're nothing more than a sadistic cutthroat like these reptiles around us."

Odo admired his courage to speak up like he did on the runabout, and stepped in on his part. "I would imagine myself you were too...frightened to resort to this low level of illicit behavior."

By illicit, he meant unlawful and against whatever the Founder wanted him to do to Odo himself and the other three - the baby included - who were his responsibilities to protect and serve. He saw Weyoun 7's face fall into shock and triumphed that he got him where he wanted him, and then he heard Mia's giggle and looked over to see her trying to stifle them as well as her cheeks flush red. The other Weyoun was doing the same, and it was then that Odo understood what this was about. His definition of illicit was mistaken for the other meaning which bordered on sexual behavior; Mia mistook it that way, but that wasn't what Odo meant at all. He shook his head and looked back at Weyoun 7 who had regained his dignity and folded his arms across his chest.

"I tolerated your willfulness long enough, Odo. It seems I have to act now that you labeled it 'illicit'. The Founder wishes to see these two -" He nodded to the couple. "- out of the way, but she won't know about you until word breaks of your demise. There will always be a necessary excuse, just not from my own tongue."

He intended to have them all executed here on this planet. Baby Riona was included; he wouldn't let it slide that Weyoun 7 would allow her to live. He knew the answer every time he asked himself and others around him, but now he felt like it anyways: what kind of people ordered the deaths of innocent women and children - and men, too, who weren't fighting? He looked over when the Mia Vorta spoke up.

"Darling, I can't wait any longer. This little runt is resisting, just like her parents have done." Her soft purple eyes hardened when they made contact with those of her human progenitor's. "Can I get to work on her now?"

Her...lover, now that it was clear, chuckled and bowed his head once. "Of course, my dear. I was just getting to it. The longer this is delayed, the more my body aches to see the light leave my predecessor's eyes."

If only he could change into something right now and take this monster of a Vorta diplomat down, but damn those phasers at him and his friends, now that he could call Weyoun 6 one on the second day. "Tell me something then, my illustrious successor," said man drawled, "how much longer do you think you yourself will be alive once you've finished me off?"

Weyoun 7 hissed, lips pulling back into a feral manner, motioning for two Jem'Hadar behind the bound one to haul him to his feet, taking him by either arm. "I'll be alive long enough for the Founder to welcome me back a hero for killing our enemy. There can be only one Weyoun, as you said yourself, Odo." He looked past his shoulder and nodded to Amaya, who still had the baby crying in her arms. "Take Mia with you. And Odo remains here where he is guarded." His eyes glittered with irredeemable malice. "He'll be saved for last when the bodies of his dear friends are tossed in front of him and promptly vaporized."

Now he felt like he failed them both. He looked at Mia when she was taken up and dragged over to Amaya and her daughter, trying not to cry. The strong woman she was had been replaced by the emotional, anxious girl he first met so many years ago - sensitive to all forms of criticism and danger, fearing for her own life and everyone around her. He hoped she would last long enough for them all to be saved...

~o~

"If you touch one hair on their heads, you'll answer not only to me, but to Captain Sisko," Odo threatened as one last ditch effort, but Weyoun knew it was hopeless. He was escorted by the two Jem'Hadar and led by his successor away from his...friend and the love of his life and their daughter. Now he could call Odo his friend. If only he could shout out to Odo and thank him for helping them this far, but he could do this:

"Please, take care of Mia and the baby, Odo," he said, ignoring the burning hatred in Weyoun 7's eyes. "No matter what happens." He looked up and saw her held by only one Jem'Hadar, the baby still in Amaya's hold and calming down now. He tried not to think of this as the last time they would see each other. They faced near death on numerous occassions, but this might be the last, for all he knew. _I love you. The both of you._

 _We love you, too._

Odo looked up at him with a hopelessness that matched his heart. "Weyoun..."

"Keep where you are, Founder," the Jem'Hadar to his right ordered, shoving the barrel of his phaser into Odo's face; in response, Odo growled and turned his icy eyes upwards.

"I'm not a Founder, and I am tired of having to tell everyone that."

"Be silent now, Odo," Weyoun 7 snapped, pointing his finger in his face in addition. "Or I can order them to fire you at once."

"Well, then do it. Or maybe I'll shapeshift my way out of these bonds and barrels so they can accidentally shoot away that arrogant bluster you possess." Weyoun 7 flushed and trembled with visible rage and humiliation.

"Why, you -"

"You don't want to harm him, but me, remember?" Weyoun 6 spoke up, his duty to protect a god returning even while he was in handcuffs. The other Weyoun stopped and returned to eye him calculatingly. "You don't want to waste anymore time here when you should take me away and face me like the man the Female Changeling and your _whore_ -" He decided to turn it around and call Amaya what Weyoun 7 had called his Mia, and it provoked titters from his beloved while Amaya herself hissed like a cat, Odo chuckled, and Weyoun 7 bared his teeth. "- see you as? If you're a real man and a hero that you want to be seen as in the eyes of the Dominion, then prove it."

He might risk his own life at phaser fire, but he knew he was better than Weyoun 7 over anything. He had more honor and respect in himself than anyone else would think - even the Founder herself. Now he began to see himself in a better way than before; how it came to be, he had no idea, but because Mia helped him see the light as well as Odo, Weyoun 6 would be a man and fight his successor who desired his death. Just as he should have killed Damar when he had the chance over the death of Weyoun 5.

Weyoun 7 motioned for him to be led away, and he was turned away from seeing his family one more time. He heard the other shout orders to Amaya to "take mother and child back to the ship." Then he began to speak to another Jem'Hadar.

"And give me my weapon. I'll need all the help I can get. If he wants to insult my dignity and strength to fight for my people, I'll give it to him." Weyoun 6 smiled to himself that went unnoticed to the Jem'Hadar holding him by the arms.

 _It's time, my love,_ he sent. _For you and our daughter, and Odo. I will get out of this and fight this Weyoun all for you. I won't give up my hope and honor. I'll make you proud, put all that training to use._

"Uncuff him."

He felt his hands freed in moments once they were yards away from the site - who knew what that witch was doing to his lover and child right now - and saw this as his time to strike. He brought his fist up and cracked the Jem'Hadar to his right to the jaw, and his left foot to the groin of the other. He whirled his body around and disarmed that one by kicking his phaser out of his hands; the other tried to take him but didn't stand a chance. Weyoun cartwheeled once, kicking him in the face again and sending him to the ground, losing hold on his phaser. The weapon went flying into the air, but Weyoun caught it deftly and fired it at both Jem'Hadar before throwing it down and looking at an amused Weyoun 7.

There was no mistaking that smile. "You anticipated this."

"Absolutely." Weyoun 7 then reached behind him and withdrew the _kar'takin._ "Just as I anticipated this moment ever since I was activated. It is time to honor the Dominion, my predecessor."

He wielded it with the ferocity of a Klingon, with the desire to kill him. Weyoun 6 smiled and knelt down to draw the _kar'takin_ of one of the dead Jem'Hadar. This was the first time he did not feel regret killing one of the servants of the Dominion. Oh, he was ready to do the same to Weyoun 7.

For the Federation.

For the Alpha Quadrant.

For Odo.

For his family.

And for himself.

~o~

Seeing Weyoun taken from his family was more than Odo could bear. Seeing Mia and their child taken from Odo after the father was - that was even more so. Now Odo remained kneeling on the ground glaring proudly at the Jem'Hadar over him and their rifles aimed at him. He held his tongue, refusing to give them the satisfaction and counting the time for Sisko and his party to come and fire these creatures on sight.

He had faced death - nearly death - endless times but never died himself, even involved in the deaths of a handful. He killed a fellow Changeling once, ordered the execution of three "assassins" once linked to an attempt on Gul Dukat during the occupation - but that had been based on circumstantial evidence, and he didn't differentiate between justice and order at the time because the position had been new to him. Eventually, when another occurred, he overcame his guilt by establishing true justice and calling it his life. He had vowed never to get innocent blood on his hands again - but few times when his own life and others were on the line, he had no choice but to take the perpetrator's life himself when there were no other options.

 _Laws change every day, depending on who's making them. Cardassians one day, the Federation the next - but justice is justice._ His words to live by and honor.

Facing the Dominion - his own people he had been formed with - was an even greater challenge. He hated them and loved them at the same time; he had found them after a lifetime of searching only to find they were a dictatorship he opposed. They took his powers away as punishment for killing one of their own, they waged a war against the people he called his family because they welcomed him despite the fact he wasn't like them in appearance. And now he was a godfather to the newborn daughter of a girl he looked out for ever since she came to the station her father took over since their Cardassian enemies evacuated - and the father was a clone of the man who loyally served the enemy.

And who left his people for the woman he loved as well as their child, revered Odo when he didn't need it and was nothing like the Founders he served. But that man also trusted him to protect him and his family.

And Odo had promised he would.

"I'll protect you all," he whispered to himself, closing his eyes upon hearing the click of phaser rifles. The Jem'Hadar wouldn't kill him unless they were ordered to - or would they? He recalled times they shot on sight with or without orders.

"Let him go!"

Odo's eyes snapped open at the familiar voice. Captain Sisko, at last! And he wasn't alone, either. He breathed to himself when _Kira_ \- he felt his insides leap with joy - as well as Worf and Dax joined him with opening fire on the Jem'Hadar. "Constable, are you all right?" Sisko asked.

"Perfectly, and about time you came, Captain," Odo answered, standing as Jadzia went over and helped get the cuffs off him. "But Mia and the baby have been taken -" He hesitated to bring in the name of the father. "- as well as Weyoun."

Dax sputtered. " _Weyoun_ is here, too?"

"Constable, what has gone on while you were away?" Sisko demanded.

"Captain, I would rather save the details for later, but she gave birth here a long while before either of you came here. Weyoun was the reason we both left the station, chose to defect to us, so he isn't the one we all remember, but there is another like him whom he's facing alone now, and apparently the Dominion caught on so decided to eliminate him. And there is a Vorta version of Mia that the Dominion have created. We have to find them now," he begged Mia's father. "Weyoun can't be killed by his successor."

Sisko looked like he wanted to believe it as much, but because he still hated the Vorta for everything, it was difficult because he knew there was more than Odo was telling him, and he wouldn't continue until he had everything. It seemed Odo had no choice but to answer him. "Why, Constable? If he's chosen to join us as you said, I want to know why."

"Not only because he has valuable information for us to win this war, but it's also because of Mia," Odo answered, seeing Nerys bow her head, and both Worf and his wife exchanged a glance. "He's the father of her child."

~o~

To learn that Mia had given birth brought joy into Kira's heart, and she was happy to welcome her and Odo's godchild - but now they were taken prisoner by a new...Weyoun and a new Mia Vorta? She knew the Vorta were brilliant with methods of cloning, but how did they get something of Mia and create a Vorta version of her? And as for Weyoun, if Odo was thinking this, she wasn't sure how the universe would ever accept _two_ of them, one for the Federation and the other for the Dominion.

Odo said this _defective_ wasn't the same Weyoun the crew dealt with over the last few months, so this wasn't the same one who fathered Mia's baby and gave them hell during the Dominion-Cardassian occupation. He'd been the one to contact Odo under the alias of "Russol"; so he was dead, after all, as they thought. And all of this had to do with Mia and the baby, perhaps the war itself. He left the Dominion for them; it all made perfect sense.

Now she was beginning to think - if she ever saw his face again - she could start to trust Weyoun.

But she couldn't say so about Captain Sisko.

"WHAT?!" He exploded with the fury of the Bajoran Fire Caves. He took two steps forward and gritted his teeth together as his eyes bore down on their chief of security. "You mean to tell me you just found out that the man who unbrokenly represents our enemy who forced us out of our home and are responsible for the deaths of millions of comrades and civilians _did_ my daughter and is the child's father?! Do you know what this spells, Constable?!"

Nerys held her breath, unsure of what to think as she watched between her lover and commander back and forth, Worf and Dax with her. "Of course, Captain, but it's nothing like you must be thinking."

"Explain." Benjamin had managed to calm down but was still seething, taking this worse than any of them thought. How could it be otherwise?

"I wasn't exactly sure of this either, but you said it once yourself, she's responsible for whatever her actions are. She knew all along what she got herself into - and yes, I knew from the beginning. This has gone on much longer than nine months. They've been...involved since long before the war began."

"So, you yourself knew all along and never told me yourself? What has my crew been doing?" He whirled around and faced the three of them red-eyed - a figure of speech. "Keeping this secret from me?"

She couldn't let Odo take the fall for this, so Kira shook her head and stepped forward. "No, I knew all along myself, too. So has Quark, Jake and a few others. But it was Mia's choice whether she was ready, and you knew that, Benjamin," she said calmly. She'd dealt with his wrath in the past and would gladly risk it now, for Mia.

"Not us," Jadzia said, motioning to herself and her husband. "We're just learning of this." She looked at Nerys with a silent, slightly accusing eye but slowly faded to understanding.

"Well, thank you then, old man," Benjamin said sarcastically before turning his attention back to Odo, who interrupted and took charge over their own captain.

And he spoke with more passion than she remembered him ever showing. "Look, Captain, we don't have time to stand here and argue, talk about indiscretions and the likes. We have your daughter and granddaughter - as well as our possible new ally - to save. I promised Weyoun I would keep them safe, and I _will_ keep it for him. If he were here now, he would have asked you the same thing. You won't accept him now, but in time you'll see how much...undying love your daughter holds for him as I hold for Nerys."

She forced a smile at this time; he couldn't have picked a more "perfect" time to announce everlasting love to her. He returned it briefly before getting serious again. "So, what do you suggest we do now, Captain?"

He seemed to get through to Bejnamin, because the captain took a few deep breaths to calm himself down and nodded. "Well, since Mia and the baby were taken one way and Weyoun in the other, we split up. Odo and Kira, you both are with me, and Dax and Worf look for Weyoun. We might meet up again over each course, but make sure we get there alive." He scoffed and checked his phaser pistol one more time, muttering to himself.

"I came too far to lose any lives today in a place like this."

~o~

An idea glimmered to life in his mind, and he threw down his _kar'takin_ to shrug off his leather vest, the whole act making his opponent baffled. Weyoun 7 blinked, keeping his hold on his own blade as he watched him remove his shirt until his upper body was bare. "Choose to flaunt your masculinity before my eyes, my predecessor? Because it is you and I, and not one of your practice sessions with Damar and...Mia."

Weyoun 6 watched as he, too, threw down his weapon and began to do the same. So he decided to prove himself, too. But having his shirt off wasn't for the sake of it; he wanted to show the mark he shared with Mia, which told everyone that he wasn't the Weyoun they remembered - but then again, no one ever saw it on him but Mia and Odo, as well as Damar and Borath. And one particular other Vorta he regarded as a dear friend since not long before the war began.

And looking at the other Weyoun, he saw that one did not have the never-ending tree symbol where it was supposed to be. Because he did not share the soul mate bond with Mia. He was the enemy, the yin to his yang - a Terran phrase - because he was the same man in body but not with where his loyalties lay. And for that, he would finish him off for everything he and the Founders had done.

"No Vorta had ever taken such...impressive prowess in history, unless they were natural and not subjected to the cloning process. Our respected Weyoun 5 was the first in a long time, and now you have it because of him and that girl. A daughter of the enemy." Weyoun 7's lip curled again. "You're a disgrace to the entire Dominion, leaving for her and her people."

"You keep saying that," Weyoun 6 spat, circling him as he began to do the same, one against one. "And I'm not a traitor to _anyone_. I awoke and saw the real picture in front of me. Everything the Dominion believed in was solely on invasion and conquest; you don't know what it's like to wake up on a lab table with all the memories coming back to you - being violated at the knife of Damar and left to die, the blood draining from your body, and you live with that memory. Nor do you know what it's like to receive word every day of the lives we lost as a price to pay for trying to win a war begun by our people. Have you felt ANY amount of compassion for innocent civillians that unfortunately got caught in the middle of the crossfires?

"But most of all, do you know what it's like to know that your predecessor fell in love - true, undying love of your own will and without the approval of your gods who created you - with a girl regardless that she is the offspring of the man against you, conceived a child with her but left her alone despite her wishes to come with them? That he almost turned her against him because her friends and family acted against them and he had no choice but to do what he called necessary? That the Founder had the _gall_ to discover the depth of his love for her and used a twisted means of separating them by ordering him to take a DNA sample to create a member of our species who looked _just like her?!_ "His blood had ultimately exploded with the passion matching every burning sun on every solar system in the universe. "Call it a form of whoring off."

The other Weyoun's jugular vein was visible in his neck, lips pulling back without means to control himself any longer. Weyoun 6 smiled and continued to toy with him; rage always drove you to act it out against your enemy. "I'm not the disgrace, 7. It's you, Amaya, the Founder, Damar - and the entire monstrous Dominion. I'm a man that you or Damar will never be."

Weyoun 7 erupted, roaring with rage and throwing himself forward at the same time as Weyoun 6, both snatching up their _kar'takin_ and rising to their feet again. Their bodies whirled around and clashed their blades together, their duel beginning. This was the first real battle he would fight himself - for everyone he loved - and in another place that wasn't a hidden room or gymnasium.

~o~

Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax stopped behind the tall, thick tree with her husband and watched the two Vorta - two Weyouns - with their shirts off and engaged in sword play with _kar'takin,_ two Jem'Hadar dead behind them, and both thirsty for blood. They wanted to kill each other, which surprised her because as far as she knew, Vorta weren't built for this. She couldn't believe she was seeing this. Even Worf was surprised.

"He's fighting with grace combined with the aggression of my people," he noted. "That's not something you see every day."

Jadzia agreed. She had always thought Weyoun, Dominion ambassador, wasn't capable of the arts of Jem'Hadar and Klingon prowess or any other aggressive humanoid and aliens in the universe. But then again, anything was possible. The Dominion was capable of anything the galaxy wasn't ready for, such as cloning. But that was another story.

He was Mia's lover, and her baby's father. She was having a little bit of a hard time taking this in, but at the same time, she wasn't surprised. She and Worf weren't exactly entirely perfect, but they loved each other with more devotion than anyone thought. They had been married for four months but no children just yet. She'd been married five times now through seven lifetimes, but as Jadzia and not Curzon - Ben's mentor and oldest friend who still lived on inside while she befriended his former student - she owned herself and gave everything she had for everyone around her while still clinging to her own identity. Mia must have been doing the same, but all this time she kept the identity of her child's father from everyone...including Jadzia and Ben, her own father. Now she knew why, but for some reason, she wasn't angry; Worf would have bombed off like Benjamin.

Jadzia would have expected Weyoun to have Mia abducted and taken with him back to the Gamma Quadrant, to Dominion territory, but why didn't he? There had to be more to him than meets the eye. Unless he...

Her thoughts were interrupted when she saw him evade a swipe of the _kar'takin._ When he did and slid his body along the ground beneath the other Weyoun, Jadzia saw something from afar behind his left shoulder - "Worf, do you see that? On his shoulder?" she whispered.

His hand was absently on his phaster holster as he nodded. "Of course. That symbol looks familiar."

"It's Mia's tattoo. But I don't know how he could have gotten that."

Worf grunted. "Let's worry about that another time. At least it tells us he's the one Sisko wants us to retrieve."

She jerked her head back in the direction of the duel, hearing a grunt from one of the Weyouns - the marked one, the one they wanted, was now on his back on the earth. The other, the one loyal to the Dominion, bore the deadly great blade down on his fallen opponent, whose lavender eyes burned with more hatred than Jadzia had ever seen in him. His life was in danger, and he needed their help because Odo's words were clear: Mia loved Weyoun and did not deserve to lose him. How Jadzia knew the feeling.

 **Weyoun has really undergone a transition throughout this story, coming to his senses when he sees the Dominion for what it really is, all for his love of Mia and their daughter. He goes from a loyal, unquestioning servant of tyrants in one form to a good man full of compassion and emotion in another. Now he's facing off his successor, something I know you guys are enjoying right now. :) If Jeffrey Combs sees this, I hope he does, too.**


	33. Hymn to Eternity

**So now I bring you the last of this amazing story I've had the pleasure of doing. I was never a Trek fan, but after watching the show, I am getting the hang of it although I have more learning to do.**

 **I keep forgetting to mention that the song "I'll Make a Man Out of You" from the Disney animated feature Mulan was the inspiration for all the practice sessions and now Weyoun 6 vs 7 in this story. :D It's what my boyfriend called "epic song montage".**

 **Named after another composition by Brunuhville. :D**

Chapter Thirty-Two

Hymn to Eternity

"What is it like to have Weyoun as your lover and this little one's father?"

Mia had been sitting at the base of a tree with phaser rifles pointed at her when the question was asked of her. She jerked her head up and glared at Amaya, with the baby still in her arms. Riona was no longer struggling or crying, but as she leaned against the Vorta's chest, she still looked very disgruntled. "Why do you care?" she spat.

Amaya giggled and bounced the baby in her arms. "Fascinating topic, given how Weyoun 7 is with me in bed, ever since I was created. Although I doubt the Founder would want us to ever have someone like this one." She switched the position she held Riona to halfway arm's length, her hands supporting the child underneath the arms. Her smile quivered as though trying not to laugh.

Mia felt like she wanted to be sick. This thing - this Vorta copy of herself - was making casual talk at a time like this, had the nerve to open her mouth about getting into bed and conceiving with your mate. Weyoun 7 would have ordered _her_ Weyoun's execution, but he planned all along to fight him man on man. "My daughter is a living being, having been a part of me until I brought her out," she said angrily. "She's not an object you can study, like that would be the only thing you're good at."

One of the Jem'Hadar lowered his rifle, though keeping it in one hand and the barrel aimed at her, as he reached and withdrew a combat dagger, the blade and its secondary gleaming at her warningly. "Sixth, please lower your defenses," Amaya scolded. "She can say what she wants to me; not like she would act against me with your weapons trained on her." Her smile - for God's sake, these Vorta, sans her Weyoun, were so cocky and sure of themselves - returned, and Mia wished she could smack it off. However, on a sick and twisted level, it reminded her of the first time she met Weyoun - his fourth incarnation, when he ordered his men to not harm her. Rather, called her a "delicate flower", which made her flustered. He was still the charmer no matter what incarnation he was.

Looking away from these reptilian warriors, she locked eyes with Amaya, seeing lavender like Weyoun's. They were filled with such cunning, trickery and intelligence, and - love? She was a new form of Vorta, and already knew what love was? How could she know in such a short amount of time, and what information was she fed in only a few days' time?

An idea illuminated in her brain. Maybe she could use this to her advantage while her back was against the tree with two phaser rifles and a combat knife pointed at her, and her baby daughter in the arms of her Vorta counterpart. "I'll answer your question if you answer one of mine."

Amaya's face was piqued with intrigue. "Oh?" she asked coyly, lowering her arms and holding Riona against her again, rubbing her small back with one hand.

"The one who fathered my child was actually Weyoun 5, the one that number 7 called 'a true patriot'. He _was_ a great man, but I couldn't say I agreed with everything he believed in about the Dominion. I first met Weyoun when he was still in his fourth incarnation and was at that time of my life where I had no idea what to do with it. I was a simple...game girl wearing a revealing costume and feeling alive and free despite working for a sexist alien," she said with a little nervous laugh. She hated talking about her life with this creature, but at the same time, it was the only way to start to earn Amaya's trust enough to turn the tables on her in the end. "At first, my father wasn't happy with it, but he couldn't stop me because he knew how happy I was, enjoying myself and making friends out of everyone. I never had a man in my life, just perfect by myself, dreaming about getting married eventually and having a family, but it didn't seem possible...until one day, a few years after we were stationed on Deep Space 9 after the Cardassians left it, a dazzling, amethyst-eyed being walked into my life under the most grievous of circumstances.

"Weyoun was in the fourth incarnation, as I said, but it didn't start out in the way you might be thinking. Passion and love aren't something to jump into right away on the first day, first week or month perhaps. It takes time to grow; some call it chemistry. But my father and the rest of the crew, as well as his own Jem'Hadar, didn't like or trust him on sight. I still don't know, but maybe I wanted to talk to him myself as silly as it was; he wouldn't even last any way, or so I thought at the time. However, I was in luck when he approached me himself - or rather, I accidentally ran into him." Amaya laughed with her, and was now walking over to sit in front of her and perching the baby on her knee so she was sitting, too. "He asked me to dine with him, and I did - and safe to say, he wasn't as bad as everyone thought he was. I knew from the beginning that he was nothing but a pawn in everything, programmed to obey orders for horrible people."

Now she knew she shouldn't have spoken ill of the Dominion, because Amaya retaliated by leaning back, eyes hard as the rest of her face. "The Dominion _isn't_ horrible -"

"Don't interrupt me," Mia snapped, the rifles about to be raised when the commander herself turned her attention to them.

"None of you fire on her unless I tell you to, do I make myself clear?" They bowed their heads and lowered their weapons at once, making her sigh with some relief. "Please, continue," Amaya said softly, smiling again. "What happened after your dinner evening?"

"During," Mia corrected, "the evening, there was a brawl between our Chief of Operations and one of the Jem'Hadar, but then he was punished by having his neck broken by the First. My father confronted him about how their peoples' differences weren't going to make their mission any better, regarding the rebel Jem'Hadar who attacked my father's station for some equipment to complete a gateway that hadn't been seen in over two hundred thousand years until two years ago. Sad fact was because our peoples were too different to get along well. But Weyoun really wanted us to, as I did," she admitted with a little smile as she remembered how enthusiastic he was when he spoke of how the Federation and Dominion could reach understanding - but in the end, it was unpleasant military business.

"I got punched in the face by that misbehaving Jem'Hadar, but nothing severe. Weyoun took me back to his guest room and took care of me. We were talking more, getting to a bit more personal level when I told him of my real family I had before I was Captain Sisko's daughter. He and my father were fellow officers in Starfleet; my mother died ill when I was nine, but I lost my father when I had just turned eighteen. He was killed the same day as Benjamin's wife, and when that happened, he took me to live with him and his son, whom I grew up with as though he were my own brother, and nothing between us changed a bit. Weyoun was every bit interested in me more than anyone had ever been that I could remember...like he understood me." She remembered how intense his eyes were, luring her into their pools when she found it in her to ask him... "And I had it in myself to ask him if he ever wanted to be free, on his own will. It began there, something he carried through his successor. But our time together wasn't what began what I began to feel for him."

"What was it?"

"The kiss he gave me before we received word that the mission was a success," Mia answered, feeling dreamy and on cloud nine. "I don't remember being kissed in my life, but for him to do it was nothing I could describe in existence. He was like a...little boy new to something he was excited to try. But that was the last time I saw him, because I was told that he'd been vaporized by his own Jem'Hadar First. For questioning his loyalty to the Dominion." It had been two years since the incident, but the pain wasn't as great as it had been then, but that was because she never linked with him until the next one came along. "I thought he'd be gone for good, because how can you spend your life moping over someone you met in so short a time? I'd been told that any feelings developed would always flee, and that there were plenty of fish in the sea. Until I met him again, a year later."

Amaya's eyes were glazing over. "Weyoun 5," she said. The baby was cooing and reaching out for her mother, but she wasn't willing to hand her over to Mia yet. It seemed that by continuing until she got to _that_ part, she'd have to earn her daughter back into her arms. "How did you meet him again?"

"He and Dukat came to the station regarding a former Legate who had rebelled against Cardassian authority for the sake of his people, and paid the price for it by becoming an enemy of his government. Dukat had become an ally of the Dominion and took his place as leader, selling his planet for more power. He was hell-bent on taking back his prisoner to Cardassia Prime, and Weyoun was with him on it. The Founders promoted him from Field Supervisor to ambassador of the Dominion; he showed up at my workplace with Gul Dukat and cleared up the cloning secret. Things began to get more...serious from there.

"He was still dedicated to his people despite taking my freedom question into consideration; in other words, we hit a rocky start because of our differences, but in the end...we had what I called the connection. I _still_ don't know, but it was always there. Since his last incarnation, I felt the desire growing stronger and stronger, and it was that same night we crossed paths again that we gave in to each other. But it wasn't just desire between us; it was love. I could see as well as feel it from him. He loved and respected me but couldn't turn me over to the Dominion if he wanted to. But it was only two months later that things took a turn for the worst."

Amaya's attention shifted downwards to the baby, who was getting impatient and grunting; now she relented and handed her over to her mother. "This little one was conceived," she stated. Mia rolled her eyes but gladly took her daughter into her arms; to hold her once again made her feel proud and strong again. She held Riona to her heart and looked Amaya in the eyes.

"Yes, she was. And her name is _Riona._ Weyoun was as happy as I was, regardless of how it didn't seem possible he would be accepted, but it wasn't enough. Me carrying her was an addition to our already complicated relationship when his people forced my family and the crew to evacuate our home, all because we tried to set up defenses to prevent Dominion cargo from ever coming into the Alpha Quadrant. The Dominion is nothing but full of monsters, and I don't regret that," she said coldly, holding her child closer when the Vorta bared her teeth and hissed. "I stayed behind for the sake of my home." She would not give her the satisfaction and mention Dukat's role of keeping her as a "gift" for himself. "But it turned out to be a sort of mistake, when Weyoun began to cause more pain not only to us, but to my brother regarding his stories about the occupation, accusing him of bias. And those of my friends who stayed behind finally stood up to the Dominion, but the Founder as well as Gul Dukat - and the man I loved who fathered our daughter - ordered their deaths; they would have followed through if my father and the rest of the fleet didn't show up after the minefield was destroyed. We got our home back, and that was when I forgave Weyoun. Our love was difficult, but it was the best thing that ever happened to us. The sad fact, too, was he couldn't live with us because of this war. And in the end...Damar killed him not only because of his personal hatred, but because he found out about me." Mia's anger was bubbling back to the surface at the memory of the true agony she endured when he died through their link, seeing everything and walking through life like a zombie until the next one awoke. She lowered her gaze when Riona reached up and found her favorite necklace, cooing and playing with it. She laughed and took it out of the little hands so she didn't break the chain.

"But then he returned to me, and he was a better man. The man I always wanted him to be."

She looked past Amaya's shoulder - without making it look like she was actually glimpsing away - and almost gasped. There was Odo behind the bushes, but he wasn't alone. Kira Nerys was with him - and her father. Had they all heard every word she said? If so, then she couldn't help but internally sigh and sob with relief that she'd confessed everything without telling them directly. But she held herself together as she finished. "And even if everyone aboard DS9 doesn't accept him, I'll marry him because it's the right decision. Not even you _or_ the Dominion will destroy what we have."

Now Amaya stepped away; she apparently might talk big game, but inside she was a scared little girl. Maybe the Founder didn't pay attention as well as she thought - or as well as Weyoun 7 thought, the overconfident fool he was. Maybe all Amaya was to her was a simple sex partner for her most trusted Vorta; a tactical error, if you asked Mia. It made sense to her now, as well as the fact that Weyoun 7 couldn't really care about Amaya as much as he let on. But what she couldn't figure out was if one of them was using the other.

"Tell me something else: do you and Weyoun 7 both really _love_ each other?"

"Don't insult our devotion given to the both of us by the Founder," Amaya snarled, reaching for what also looked like a combat blade. "It was her will that we mated together, given you weren't fit for him and unloyal to the Dominion."

"Desire," Mia spat, backing further into the tree and keeping Riona closer to her, seeing her father and the others creep further and drawing their weapons - except Odo. "That's sicker than I thought. Desire is all it is, advantage in favor of the Dominion. Organized by one being I loathed with a passion ever since I met her, one of many. What you and Weyoun 7 feel is nothing compared to what Weyoun 6 and I share - what was once what number 5 and I had. Or what anyone else I love around me has. The Dominion creates an illusion of love amongst its own people, all for its leader who favors tyranny and will exterminate anyone and anything she commands in a heartbeat or two, but no more. That's how you Vorta feel, but you have yet to learn of that yourself, _new girl._ You and Weyoun 7 _feel NOTHING_."

Amaya screamed with wordless rage as she lurched forward with her knife raised, and Mia closed her eyes, covering her daughter's eyes and braced the both of them for the inevitable - but nothing happened, and a shriek of pain from Amaya made her lids pop open in time to see her fall to the ground, clutching her lower back. "Not my daughter, you fiend! Mia, get away from there!" Benjamin shouted, being the first to jump out from behind the bushes, the Jem'Hadar shouting at each other to fire at them. Still holding Riona, Mia jumped up in midst of the brief chaos when her father and Kira fired at their opponents, but Odo got them to safety and behind another tree.

"Are you both all right?" he asked, prying her hand from the baby's head and gently crooning at her when she looked up and giggled at seeing him at their aid. "I'll take that as a yes."

She looked up when her father and Kira joined them; they'd taken care of the Jem'Hadar themselves. "Daddy," Mia cried, still holding her baby and moving up to wrap her arm around his neck, happy he was here but still afraid now that the time had come to tell him everything. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I have so much to tell you now -"

"No need." His answer took her aback, even when he brought his hand up to pat her back. "I heard everything. We can talk about this when we get back home. But first..."

"Weyoun!" Mia drew back and looked at him in shock. "Where is he?"

"I sent Worf and Dax to find him, but they haven't reported it." His eyes adverted down when Riona reached out at him, and a small smile tugged at his lips. "Well, hello there, little one."

"This is Riona. Your granddaughter."

He took the baby into his arms and laughed when she reached for him. "Nice to meet you, Riona. Aren't you the cutest little thing?" He nuzzled his nose against hers, making her coo.

"Captain," Odo interrupted. "I hate to interrupt, but we have to find the others." All attention turned back to see Amaya groaning in pain and rising to her feet. "Alright, Major, get her into cuffs and bring her with us. She's taking us to Weyoun."

~o~

His body was growing tired, weary to his bones, the longer he kept up with this. He was strong enough to go for more, but he should have killed Weyoun 7 by now. So far he sported minor bruises to his torso and arms, and so did the other Weyoun - the far more deadly, sinister one in contrast to him. Who was currently sneering at him as he sensed his weariness.

Weyoun 7 crouched with both hands on the handle of the _kar'takin._ "What now? You're making this so much easier for me."

He bowed low, half the reason being to regain his strength back and the other half to give his enemy a false sense that he was indeed surrendering. "Indeed I am," he said, voice slightly rasping. "I'll make it easier for the both of us. I ought to bow down on my knees instead; would you like that? Behead me, if you want to end it now." Of course, he had no intentions of that, but he had an idea.

Weyoun 6 exhaled sharply, his lungs burning, as he let go of his weapon and fell before his enemy. _NO!_ he heard Mia scream. He sensed her nearby, hiding somewhere in the bushes, and besides her and Odo, there was also her father and the baby, as well as Major Kira, Lt. Commanders Dax and Worf - and Amaya captured, he noticed smugly. If only Weyoun 7 could see _that_. They were watching him from where they were.

His heart was beating a thousand times the rate it was supposed to, ringing enough to reach his ears - but then Weyoun 7's voice filled them, mocking and smug. "So, you've come to your senses that your life ought to be sacrificed to save your family as well as Odo. I suppose this should return as a story to hear for the Founder, as well as for myself and Amaya to remember by." He was circling Weyoun 6, _kar'takin_ lowered for the time being as he took his time to admire the sweating, bruised form but secretly wished there was blood spilling from split flesh. Gone was collected grace and pride, replaced with bloodlust no different or better than a Klingon. Weyoun 6 had his eyes lowered to the earth beneath him, saying nothing only because it added to his plan of action.

And then he raised his eyes to see those he sensed were watching him.

As foreseen, Mia was there, beside her father as well as holding onto his arm - Riona was in his arms with her face turned away from him - as he surveyed the scene with the upmost disgust. The major whom he remembered calling his predecessor out on his "games of friendship" was struggling to keep her emotions from showing despite being a longtime defender of her people; she was showing him her sympathy and wished she could take out the other Weyoun for him.

And there was Odo, face hard as stone, but he was mouthing the words clear as the sky above: _Come on. Come ON._ He wanted him to arm his defenses and pick up that _kar'takin_ again, or anything to disarm Weyoun 7 fast. He silently thanked him for the encouragement.

Amaya was glaring at him with hatred in her eyes, not that he cared, so she was rooting for her partner. She wanted to see Weyoun 6's head rolling across the earth, but she didn't know the trick up his sleeve. She was kneeling on the ground with her hands cuffed in front of her, awaiting to be taken prisoner to Starfleet, see what use or not she could be. Or perhaps activate her termination implant if she was given one, being spared from the wrath of the Founder for her failure.

Finally, there was the Trill science officer herself and her scowling Klingon husband. She shared Kira's sympathies while Worf's entire face was fierce, hard and burning with fire. A Klingon fought with ferocity and no hesitation, for honor, and now Worf's eyes were telling him now to keep going. He might not like him personally, but there was a family who needed him, and he should pick up that honorable blade against his enemy.

Seeing all the eyes on him, Weyoun 6 came to the conclusion that they were standing by because this was his fight, but he wasn't truly alone, and never would be. But out of all of them, he could see Mia counting on him the most. _Don't give up now,_ she begged.

 _I won't._ He gave her - and the rest of them - a brief smile before bowing his head, as a sign to Weyoun 7 that he was ready for the blow. He'd witnessed - along with all of his predecessors - that acquiesce and acceptance of death when there was no other way out. Once a death sentence was passed, it was to be carried out.

Weyoun 7 stopped to his left, _kar'takin_ slowly being raised again for the execution. "For the Dominion," was all he said.

 _NOW!_

His love for Mia and their daughter was what made him strong enough to abandon his misguided people and gods, the power of the Dara - the name of the symbol they shared - surging through his body, its various meanings coming together in a list starting from the bottom and working their way up.

 _Wisdom..._

 _Power..._

 _Strength..._

 _Endurance..._

 _Destiny..._

 _Leadership..._

With a great shout, Weyoun 6 threw himself backwards so he was on his back, then used his legs to kick himself to standing and then diving for his _kar'takin_ and clashing with the other's once again. He jumped back when Weyoun 7 shoved him backwards, then swung a blow in an attempt to cut off his head this way, but Weyoun 6 ducked his head in time before arising again to block another attack attempted on his chest.

Unfortunately, Weyoun 7 caught him off by shoving him backwards, and the feel of a tree trunk against his back was his prison - between that and Weyoun 7's _kar'takin_ disarming him and sending his blade to the ground so his opponent's aligned itself partially against his skin, but enough for Weyoun 7 to lean in and smile.

"Emotions really make you weak, my disgraceful predecessor. Love is a fool's fuel, but pure desire makes you stronger."

 _He's lying, and you know it,_ Mia sent. _Amaya confessed it all, and all she and 7 care about is power and lust, nothing like you and I._ And that alone was Weyoun 6's cue to act out. He lashed out then, thrusting his head forward and butting it against his foe's head with enough force to send him back and pull his blade away, but as a result, it left a small open cut that let loose violet-red blood dribbling down his chest. Mia's gasp as well as the other women's were audible to his sensitive ears. "I am NOT weak," he growled savagely, ignoring the shooting of pain in his chest and the little blood, picking his blade back up and advancing, "because a weak man who follows orders of another is too scared to do what he knows is necessary!"

He was on fire, both literally and figuratively. Weyoun 7 was now losing control at the vicious counterattack that the other let loose on him for mocking and threatening him and his beloved. He might be cloned again by the Founder, but she would never take _Weyoun 6_ from Mia and the baby again. He wasn't weak; he was strong because of that love, no matter what his enemy or anyone else taunted. Weyoun 6 gave it all he had when he lashed out his leg and kicked at the other's abdomen; his loss of hold on his _kar'takin_ was the perfect opportunity for the good Weyoun to swing his weapon from the side -

\- and left an open, oozing gash across the other Vorta's abdomen. Blood ran down in the pattern of a waterfall from Kurill Prime.

~o~

The Vorta were clones, slaves of the Dominion and made to serve them with no room for disobedience. He had been in the service half his life to know all of this, with room for more learning to come. He accepted and welcomed any life-form regardless of cultural differences, but there were always others who wouldn't welcome the Federation into their lives, but the Dominion was thus far more vast than petty disputes. He hated the Dominion and always would...but now he had watched _two_ Weyoun clones fight to the death.

He still couldn't believe that his daughter was in love with that man - the fifth one, exactly, the one he and his crew had the majority of dealing with under the last year. But now this one, the sixth whom Odo said defected, was nothing like the last one, but Benjamin Sisko wanted to find out for himself. He trusted both his constable's word as well as Mia, but Weyoun had yet to earn his trust. He wasn't swayed that easily until further proof.

But of all the things, he had not expected to see Weyoun engaging in a physical duel with his successor - nor did he expect to learn _any_ Vorta were now capable of such things. Did the Founders plan this for them?

Of course they had to. The Founders were capable of about anything and always having a surprise. But now it seemed their times of surprises were coming to an end when Benjamin considered the possibilities of whatever information Weyoun had for them could bring this war at an end at last. And how did he finally see that the Dominion was exactly what it was, a wicked dictatorship?

Seeing him fight in a manner similar to Klingon combined with a Japanese samurai gave him the answer, too: Mia. He could never mistake her defenses that he'd taught her, as well as from Worf and Major Kira. He had a lot to ask them both about how he got those moves from her - but the fierce strength and drawing of blood in the end as he finally drew his blade against his opponent shocked Benjamin Sisko enough to abandon and forget any thought he had.

Weyoun 7 fell to his knees, clutching at his ghastly wound and gasped in the deepest fear that Sisko had ever witnessed in a villain. He'd faced that in his own situations and missions, but this one affected him more than ever in a way he couldn't describe. He had thought the defective one would actually sacrifice his life for Mia and the baby - his granddaughter, and more than happy to love the little thing now that he met her - but then he surprised them all the way he did. Benjamin was amazed at how strong he was. His noble actions were enough to tell the captain that he would not let the Dominion win this round OR the war.

"W-Weyoun 6, you b-b -" the wounded Vorta sputtered furiously, a thin line of blood now spilling from the right side of his mouth.

"Bastard?" The other spat at him physically, making Sisko want to laugh. His daughter held onto his arm and leaned into him, and he wrapped his free arm around her. "No, that would be you. It's a pity you don't get to see blood spill from anyone but yourself. And I'm not the only one who gets to see it." He looked up to see Ben and the others where they were, his fallen rival following, eventually landing on their prisoner - the Vorta who looked like his own daughter and possessed her DNA, which enraged Ben to no end - and his eyes widened.

"Amaya." That was the name of the female? From the corner of his eye, Sisko saw her bow her head as though trying not to look as she waited the evitable execution of her partner.

"I never thought I would feel something such as this: satisfaction as blissful as passion when I finish you off. She gets to watch as you planned on making my family watch while you handled me." Weyoun 6 smiled then, raising the _kar'takin_ \- the thick, gleaming blade shining with vivid violet-red blood - high and then bringing it down to spray more gore across the air and landing on the earth. Ben quickly ordered Mia to not look when the beheading was performed; the others either bowed their heads or simply closed their eyes, even Worf, but it was the female Vorta who threw her head back and howled in anguish at the forced show.

The body of Weyoun 7 fell forward with a thud, the head rolling away by a few feet and stopping, the face staring up at the group with the eyes staring at them with blank yet frantic terror. Enough terror to haunt your dreams for a long time. The mouth was opened in a silent scream.

"First, one to beam up."

"Damn it!" Benjamin roared when Amaya, the female, vanished from their reaches. How could neither of them not expect that, especially after Eris? She was in their custody, unless she planned to escape either way. Not that it mattered since she was gone and leaving the system to return to Dominion territory because her lover was dead now. He had the feeling they would clone Weyoun again eventually; he'd be stupid to not expect it. But there was still the one in front of him, now fallen to his knees and staring blankly at the headless corpse of his successor. Benjamin abandoned the group, letting Mia go and still carrying the baby so they could go over to him, but he seemed oblivious.

"I...I killed him, Captain." His voice was dull, on the verge of entering shock. "I did this for you, for Mia and the baby...for the Federation." Benjamin allowed a smile to show on his face, but before he could speak, the others were already speaking up.

"You did it like a true man," Kira told him with a small smile. "And I really like men who finally find it in them to do the right thing."

"You fought for the right people with the right reasons," Worf added, bringing up a reference to his own culture. "I've never seen anything like the way you did, even when you turned your back on your own people. You fought with honor, dignity and courage."

"You made it away alive, saved all of our lives for the time being," Dax said, giving him a little slap on the shoulder; now that it was mentioned, Sisko wished Weyoun could put his shirt back on.

"But look at this now," Odo said with a gesture to Mia and baby Riona, "you have a family who needs you more than ever." He made eye contact with Sisko. "Captain?"

Benjamin was surprised that the attention was on him now. All he wanted now was to get them out of here before any more Jem'Hadar or Cardassian ships came here. "Before I answer that, I suggest we get out of here first. Sisko to O'Brien."

Chief O'Brien responded. _"Go ahead, Captain."_

"Get us all out of here. Eight to beam up."

Now they were safely aboard the _Defiant_ , ready to go home to Deep Space 9, but he knew that Weyoun wouldn't be welcomed with open arms, for obvious reasons. Now that everyone returned to their stations, he turned his attention to his daughter, the baby and Weyoun himself. As soon as the course was set, all attention was back on them when Mia proudly flaunted her child to them and immediately launched into the story, along with Odo, about the events of recovering her lover before they were trailed after by the Jem'Hadar and crashed on the planet when she and Odo refused to hand their addition back over to the Dominion, ending with her going into labor and the constable being the one to deliver the baby - that last part made everyone laugh, but Odo looked like he wanted to melt away.

Benjamin found himself looking into the baby's eyes again - lavender like her father, set in a face so much like her mother's. She was smiling at him, cooing and showing no teeth. He regretted not entirely being there for his own daughter when she needed him, and he understood why she didn't tell him who the father was before. And speaking of which, he saw how she and Weyoun looked at each other - it was the same way he saw Kira and Odo, Dax and Worf, as well as Kasidy and himself, look at each other.

~o~

A week and a half gone by, and things had slightly improved for both himself and Mia, and their daughter. Although while she and the others were welcomed back with opened arms, he wasn't so lucky, getting scowls and jeers, being called a monster, until Captain Sisko shouted at all of them to keep their distance. Afterwards, he was given a position among Odo's security staff, mostly being his aid above his deputies, so he could "keep a closer eye on him", but in Weyoun's heart, it was an honor for him to be beside a god he could actually trust with all his being. Odo still hated being called a god, but Weyoun could have sworn he secretly smiled and almost leaped with joy.

The rest of the crew seemed to warm up a little to him even though it would take more time, but being in Captain Sisko's company with Mia wasn't as bad as he thought it would be. Things, however, were still a tad awkward because the man still remembered his predecessor who caused him, his family and his crew so much trouble, but Weyoun would do everything he could to make amends for all of that. By the end of the day, however, Sisko would pull him to the side and thank him for protecting his daughter and for helping them this far, including with the ketracel-white information on Pelosa, which Starfleet took into consideration.

He remained safely aboard the station for good reasons; the Dominion was still after him, but he would be under tight surveillance as long as he remained here beside Mia and their daughter. Odo was still true to his word he gave them on the runabout and on that planet.

He still remembered the look in Weyoun 7's eyes when he removed his head from his body; it had been satisfying and so delicious to taste. He felt like he was during one of the lovemaking sessions his predecessor had with Mia, but had yet to experience it for himself. After giving birth, Mia's body was taking its time in returning to its original state, and she wasn't up for making love, either. No matter; he would gladly wait for her.

Now, here he was, one week later and in one of the holosuites owned by Quark, the Ferengi bartender. He was dressed in a black jacket and trousers, his shirt white, and Odo was in something called a "tuxedo", also in black and white. The day had come for the both of them, and they waited in front of a small crowd of guests - the entire crew of Deep Space 9, from Jadzia Dax and Worf to Chief Miles O'Brien, Dr. Julian Bashir, Quark himself and his family which was his brother Rom, sister-in-law Leeta who was also a dabo girl and a friend of Mia's, and nephew Nog who was a cadet and friends with Mia's brother Jake who was holding baby Riona for his sister and soon-to-be brother-in-law, the Cardassian tailor Garak and his betrothed Ziyal - Gul Dukat's daughter - and finally Kasidy Yates who was currently with Captain Sisko.

Weyoun tore his eyes from the people watching to look at his surroundings briefly; the holosuite program was a lush garden oasis, with cascading tree branches over them all, the makeshift altar consisting of vines, moss and flowers in pastel colors, and rose petals scattered about the ground. The arch was placed with candles and more small flowers. Mia had wanted what combined a woodland fantasy and elements of Bajor, and Kira had wanted a traditional Bajoran ceremony; Mia, however, didn't want anything fussy as long as she got married. This program, courtesy of Quark, combined everything they asked for, and that was all he and Odo wanted for their brides. To be happy.

And speaking of which...

Soft, mystical tunes filled the air when Captain Benjamin Sisko - who was performing the services - walked into eyesight with either bride on his arm. Weyoun felt as though his oxygen supply had been taken from him when he saw his bride-to-be. Mia was positively glowing, the dress baring her arms and shoulders as well as fitting to her body perfect and flaunting her without making her directly exposed; it was soft lavender instead of traditional white, the silver beading in swirls similar to those of their bonded marking as well as floral ones. Her chestnut curls cascading over her shoulders, her forehead piece and necklace both being designed after those everlasting swirls and set with a moonstone-like gem. _My Mia, my beloved._

 _I can't wait,_ she sent back, fighting to keep herself together but couldn't stop even the remotest shed of a tear down her cheek. She was making some of the guests weep, too. Weyoun had a brief look at Kira Nerys, seeing how she was the opposite of Mia, wearing fiery red satin with long lace sleeves of soft gold that covered the dress in an overlay; her hair and neck were accented with leaves of gold. Odo was a lucky man, indeed.

Now that Odo had his bride in front of him, Weyoun had his, right after Sisko kissed both brides before taking his place at the head of them all. "I stand in front of all of my incredible friends, comrades and loved ones on this one special day in such a long while to bring both these couples together for eternity in front of me, all of whom I hold a special place in my heart," he added, when he looked down at Weyoun; the latter couldn't help but manage a small smile before turning his attention back to his beloved. "I do not know how it began between either of them, but for that, it's what defines them and makes them befit to never be taken apart no matter what forces try to."

He paused to recite a passage in ancient Bajoran for the sake of tradition, but Weyoun couldn't understand any of it, not that he cared. All he could care about was Mia in front of him, unable to take his eyes off of her, and taking her away for their long-awaited wedding night. Sending the thought to her made her giggle softly.

Her father finished the citation and turned his attention to them, choosing them first because it was his daughter and son-in-law. "Mia, my loving daughter, do you accept this man as your husband to forever hold in eternity?"

She nodded. "I do."

"And do you swear to honor him and protect him against all who would dare to separate you?"

"I swear." Her answer was firm and unbreakable. She'd come all this way, bypassing the Dominion and the war itself to reach this day with him. Weyoun's heart leaped when she made the vow, even more when it was his turn.

"Weyoun, my new son, do you accept this woman as your wife to forever hold in eternity?"

"I do," Weyoun responded, proud that his voice was steadier than his heart.

"And do you swear to honor her and protect her against all who would dare to separate you?" He saw that beneath the exterior of calm composure, Sisko was warning him that if he ever so much as hurt his daughter... Weyoun cut off the thought and answered him, adding it to the list of nothing else that mattered.

"I swear."

"Then for all who is watching, I pronounce them husband and wife. Weyoun, you may kiss your bride."

He proudly did so for all to see, and the applause roared up. Not included as tradition for them was the fact they had to drink from a bowl, but he wouldn't be able to taste it anyways, and he honestly did not see the point of that. The only thing that meant most to him was that Mia Sisko was finally his wife. He was happier than he had ever been in his life.

He broke the kiss when Sisko turned his attention to the other couple beside them, the captain going through the same routine. Watching, Weyoun saw how Odo held Major Kira's hands in his as Weyoun held Mia's, seeing the ring winking from the major's hand; it was a unique golden band glimmering with a single ruby, which he thought fit Kira perfectly. And just like he and his new wife did, Odo and Kira sealed their union with a kiss, and the bowl ritual was spared from them, too, given Odo's equal lack of taste. Joyous cries sounded throughout the room when they, too, were declared married, and now the festivities in Quark's bar would begin.

~o~

Mia couldn't stop squealing, like she was sixteen again. She was married now, and this was everything she ever wanted, and Weyoun was happy, too, unable to let her go or keep his hands off of her. How on earth did she ever get here?

Just think that once she was a fun-loving girl who didn't have a specific goal in her life, suffered emotionally and psychologically after losing both her real parents but eventually gaining a new family, moving to live in deep space with her father's best friend whom she loved like a real father - and loving the man's son like he was her brother - and getting work as a dabo game girl wearing skimpy clothing under a profit-greedy Ferengi who actually cared about her like Odo did for her; besides those two, she befriended almost everyone aboard the station. She faced danger on almost every corner, almost got killed a couple times - and then falling in love with an enemy who took her breath away and gave her a child.

Now she married the man and was raising the child with him, like they ought to. And he abandoned his barbarous people for his family and a good cause he came to realize. No longer would she look at Weyoun as a clone, as a successor of the one who actually gave her his seed; he was her husband and an independent being, accepted slowly by everyone who loved her as much.

"Oh, Weyoun!" She threw her arms around him as soon as they left the party that evening. Riona was staying with Ben and Kasidy for the night, so now the bridal couple had tonight for themselves. "I never thought we would ever be like this. How does it feel to be married?"

"Mmm," he purred, kissing her again as soon as he set her down. "I feel like a new man. It's wonderful. And tonight..." He leaned forward and pressed a kiss on her shoulder before nibbling it and sending the shooting through her nerves. She shuddered and giggled at once. "...will be worth the wait."

She reached up and caressed his ears, making him growl softly with growing arousal before reaching his rich hair, moaning, "Yeah, making love after such a long time -"

The door buzzed then, ruining the moment. Weyoun groaned and let his new bride go. "Now who could that be?"

"Come in!" Mia called, and the doors opened. She turned around and gasped at who had come at this unfortunate time to visit her and her new husband. "Annora! What a pleasant surprise! What are you doing here?!"

She hadn't seen her old friend since she left school, but Annora O'Neal hadn't changed a bit, except the fact that her short sandy blonde hair had grown out past her shoulder, bouncing as she walked over and wrapped her arms around her best friend from childhood for the first time in a long time. "Mia, it's been so long. I was transferred to the station, but then I heard you got married." Her attention shifted then to Weyoun. "This must be him."

"Miss...?"

"Mrs.," she corrected, smiling and holding up her left hand. "Annora O'Neal. You must be Weyoun."

He smiled back and extended his hand to accept hers. "I am. It's an honor and a pleasure. But I'm afraid we'll have time tomorrow to catch up because my wife and I were about to..." He looked back and forth between her and Mia, who couldn't help but blush and look down, but Annora laughed.

"It's no problem. I understand. I'd love to talk to you both tomorrow, because I also brought someone with me who says he knows you, Weyoun."

Now the mood had changed from jovial to tense. Mia was about to answer, wondering what the business was that could have waited because tonight was supposed to be special and end so when Annora walked over and pressed the button beside the door to open it, and in strolled another Vorta, making Mia freeze. She didn't recognize him, but her husband did, and she looked up when Weyoun spoke the name.

"Keevan."

 **This chapter took more effort to do like an earlier chapter which concentrated on the wedding of Worf and Jadzia (who is alive in this story and in the next), but worth it. I loved the double wedding between Odo and Kira, and the main pair themselves who have overcome all obstacles to get to be the family they are now. It is so damn strange that I am officially finished with the first of the Vorta Brides trilogy, but at the same time, I'm very proud of it as I am with any other story I have done and will continue to do so. :) Thank you for reading, and as I always say, reviews are appreciated. This has been an exciting journey into new territory - I've said it before - and I look forward to more in the future.**

 **People should know that Amaya will return eventually, and no one has forgotten her; they just chose not to think about her for the time being. Just in case anyone thought to ask me about her. And prepare for more surprises in store, too. ;D**

 **Now that the next titular couple has been introduced, the second story is in the making. Up next is "Keevan and Annora: Forged in the Desert Heat". I do not know when it will be up, but in the meantime, keep checking. :D It's going to be a new challenge compared to this one.**


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